‘Do not consume raw cookie dough’? Please.

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Two months after reports of E. coli contamination prompted its removal from supermarket shelves, Nestle Toll House refrigerated cookie dough is returning to a store near you.

Here’s the PR Newswire release.

It states: ‘To make it easy for both retail partners and consumers to identify the new batch of cookie dough, a blue ‘New Batch’ label will appear on all new production cookie dough items. NESTLE TOLL HOUSE shipping cases also are marked in blue (rather than the previous black) to denote new production and will contain the statement: ‘Do not consume raw cookie dough.’ The adoption of this distinct labeling is the result of helpful discussions between Food and Drug Administration officials and Nestle, following reports of E. coli O157:H7 illnesses that appeared to be related to the consumption of raw cookie dough.’

If you’re not distracted by the delightfully tongue-in-cheek (as I read it) word ‘helpful,’ you might well wonder about the point of buying cookie dough if you can’t eat it raw.

-- Tami Dennis