WA Listeria Alert: Kroger, Albertsons, Trader Joe’s & More
We just learned of a recall affecting many Pacific Northwest stores. The food product at risk contains listeria, a bacteria that can cause a foodborne illness known as listeriosis.
What’s Listeria?
Listeria is a foodborne illness that infects about 1,600 people annually in the United States.
How many Americans die from Listeria each year?
260
Listeria’s terrible side effects and symptoms
Pregnant women can suffer stillbirths and miscarriages. Usually, children under 5, adults over 65, and people with damaged immune systems get the worst of listeria. Symptoms include headache, muscle aches, fever, sometimes loss of balance, and possibly even seizures.
It can grow in uncooked meats, vegetables, soft cheeses, and unpasteurized milk. The listeria-launched recall of nearly 10 million pounds of meat and chicken products has reached top-selling store brands.
What WA stores were affected?
Walmart, Kroger, Albertson’s, Trader Joe’s, Target, Amazon Fresh, or Aldi’s.
The ready-to-eat chicken recall
The ready-to-eat chicken ingredient supplied by BrucePac of Durant, Oklahoma, was discovered to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. Here are the recall details from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service.
Products affected
BrucePac announced a recall of nearly 10 million pounds of beef, pork, turkey, and chicken—all ready-to-eat meat and poultry items made between June 19 and Oct. 8.
When an ingredient supplier, such as BrucePac, has a foodborne illness problem, all of that supplier’s customers' food is at risk to the public.
By this past Sunday evening (October 13th), the entire list of chicken products involved in the listeria recall filled a 203-page PDF.
Some of the affected products include:
BrucePac Ready-To-Eat Meats Recall
Gallery Credit: Tammie Toren
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