Sunland, salmonella, peanut butter, nut plant: FDA halts production at plant linked to salmonella

U.S. regulators shut down a New Mexico nut-processing facility Monday after the plant was linked to an outbreak of salmonella earlier this year.

The Food and Drug Administration's decision to suspend the registration of the Sunland, Inc., plant in Portales, New Mexico, comes after the FDA traced the June outbreak to nut butter produced at the facility. In a statement announcing the move, the agency said it would reinstate the company's food facility registration "only when FDA determines that the company has implemented procedures to produce safe products."

The FDA said the Sunland suspension marks the first time it has exercised that power, granted under a 2011 bill modernizing food safety laws. There was no immediate response from Sunland, which recalled all products from the Portales plant in September.

The outbreak sickened at least 41 people in 20 states, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.