FDA has a cow over unauthorized Greek yogurt

A Greek yogurt whose manufacturer had been enjoying exponential growth in the United States was pulled from the nation's shelves recently, leaving customers wondering why they couldn't buy it anymore.

Fage Total Greek Yogurt had to stop sales after the US Food and Drug Administration discovered that the company did not have proper certification for interstate sales, according to Antonios Maridakis, general manager of Fage USA. "It has nothing to do with the product," Maridakis said in a phone interview from Athens. "This is not a quality issue."

During a promotion at Whole Foods Market, Maridakis said, a competitor notified the FDA that Fage was not on the agency's list of authorized interstate milk shippers, a designation that requires certification of a dairy producer's sanitation processes. As a result, Fage, which started selling in the United States in 2000, is losing $500,000 a week in business here while it attempts to convince any state where it does business to send inspectors to Greece.

Fage's yogurt -- mostly cow's milk varieties, and one with sheep and goat's milk -- has been popular for its creamy, thick texture, a result of the liquid being strained out. At the Trader Joe's store in Brookline's Coolidge Corner, a sign told shoppers that the yogurt was pulled because it lacks FDA certification. It also assured customers that there is no complaint about quality and that the product should be back on the shelves within three to six months.

Maridakis said the Greek dairy, which was a major sponsor of the Summer Olympics, expects inspectors from New York state to make the trip, but he worries that the bureacracy will be slow. If it takes too long, he said, the company is prepared to consider building a plant in the United States to take advantage of the company's success here. "The Americans love the product," he said.

JOE YONAN