FDA warning letter to Florida cheese maker cites no Listeria hazard analysis or sanitation controls

On October 6, 2026, FDA posted an August 28, 2026 warning letter to Tipical Latin Food, Corp. DBA La Pradera of Doral, Florida, which makes ready-to-eat Venezuelan-style soft and semi-soft cheeses and cachapa. FDA inspected the facility from April 20 to 27, 2026 and found serious violations of the CGMP and preventive controls rule, 21 CFR Part 117. According to the letter, the firm had no food safety plan for any of its products, a repeat observation from inspections in December 2024 and May 2025, and it had not responded to the Form FDA 483.

For the cheeses, FDA says the firm did not evaluate growth of bacterial pathogens such as Listeria monocytogenes during refrigerated storage, did not monitor cooler temperatures, and did not evaluate contamination with environmental pathogens from exposed product and employee handling. The letter notes that environmental monitoring is required under 21 CFR 117.165(a)(3) when contamination of a ready-to-eat food with an environmental pathogen is a hazard requiring a preventive control. The investigator also reported cheese residue on a food-contact surface after cleaning, residue in weld crevices of ring molds, live apparent flies and cockroaches in the processing room, and cracked floors with standing water. FDA asked the firm to respond within 15 working days.