Chang Farm has issued a voluntary recall of some of its Bean and Soy Sprouts, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) just announced. Chang Farm of River Road, Whatley, Massachusetts, issued the recall, with specific expired date codes, because of the possible presence of Listeria monocytogenes (L. Monocytogenes) contamination.

The affected product is packaged in 10-pound bags (bulk) and 12-ounce plastic bags (retail), labeled under the Chang Farm Brand as Soy Sprouts and have a “Sell By” date of May 23, 2009 or May 24, 2009 and Bean Sprouts with “Use By” date of May 23, 2009 or May 24, 2009. The product has been distributed to retail stores and restaurants throughout Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey. (more…)

Torres Hillsdale Country Cheese of Reading, Michigan just announced the recall of all lots of various types of its soft Mexican-style cheeses due to potential Listeria contamination.

A sample of queso fresco cheese, taken by an investigator from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on May 26, 2009, was subsequently tested by an FDA laboratory and discovered to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes.

Listeriosis, the food poisoning generated by Listeria monocytogenes, is particularly dangerous to the elderly, pregnant women, newborns, those with chronic medical conditions, people with HIV, or those undergoing chemotherapy. In serious cases, the disease spreads to the nervous system, causing headaches, stiff neck, and convulsions. Listeriosis can also cause meningitis and blood poisoning in immune-compromised individuals.

The recalled products were distributed to retails stores and delis in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Ohio, and Wisconsin and were sold under the name “Aguas Calientes,” as listed below. Note: Packaging may also include a label with the name “Torres Hillsdale Country Cheese LLC.” The recall encompasses all expiration dates:

Queso Asadero: 12-ounce and 10-pound ball
Queso Oaxaca: 10-pound ball
Queso Fresco: One-pound and eight-ounce ball
Queso Requeson: One-gallon pail and three-gallon pail
Morral Adobera: Three-pound packages

The FDA is advising consumers and retailers to return all unused recalled products to the manufacturer. Consumers with questions may contact Salvador Torres, Manager, Torres Hillsdale Country Cheese LLC at 517-368-5990, Monday through Friday between 7:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. EDT.

In April we wrote that Torres Hillsdale Country Cheese of Reading announced a recall of its 10-pound Oaxaca cheese ball products over concerns of contamination with the serious, sometimes deadly, Listeria monocytogenes pathogen. That recall involved Torres Hillsdale Country Cheese’s Oaxaca soft Mexican-style cheese, said the FDA at the time.

In late March, Torres Hillsdale Country Cheese expanded an earlier recall, also of cheese products and also over concerns of Listeria contamination. That recall, was announced by the FDA and involved certain Asadero and Oaxaca soft Mexican-style cheeses. The original recall from March 2008, was expanded to include a variety of additional states. The current recall is the first since early April.

In pregnant women, Listeriosis can result in miscarriage, stillbirth, or birth of a baby suffering from the infection. Pregnant women are about 20 times likelier than others to be infected, with about one-third of all Listeriosis cases occurring during pregnancy; the incidence of Listeriosis in newborns is 8.6 per 100,000 live births and the perinatal and neonatal mortality rate (stillbirths and early infant deaths) is a massive 80 percent.

Listeria monocytogenes is responsible for an estimated 2,500 illnesses in the United States annually, with about 200 in every 1,000 cases resulting in death. Listeriosis can take days, even weeks, to develop and can present in anything from a mild flu-like illness to meningitis and septicemia.

Routine tests conducted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency uncovered listeria contamination in Strubs Norwegian Style Steelhead Salmon. The agency is alerting consumers not to eat Strubs Norwegian Style Sliced Smoked Steelhead Salmon in 300-gram packages because of potential contamination with the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes. L. monocytogenes is a food borne pathogen that can cause serious illness and death.

The recalled Strubs Norwegian Style Sliced Smoked Steelhead Salmon was distributed by West Side Foods Inc. of Bronx, New York and was imported from Canada; 13 cartons were sold to three kosher retail stores in New York and Maryland.

The FDA explained that the recalled Strubs brand Norwegian Style Sliced Smoked Steelhead Salmon was distributed in cartons containing vacuum-packed 300-gram packages bearing UPC code 0 71217 69997 4, registration number “0609,” and stickers with a code date of 03MA09. There is no production date on the individual packages. There are 24 individual-300 gram packages per carton.

The FDA is urging consumers who have purchased the Strubs product to dispose of the product in a safe manner and wash their hands thoroughly after handling the product.

Listeriosis, the food poisoning generated by Listeria monocytogenes, is particularly dangerous to the elderly, pregnant women, newborns, those with chronic medical conditions, people with HIV, or those undergoing chemotherapy. In serious cases, the disease spreads to the nervous system, causing headaches, stiff neck, and convulsions. Listeriosis can also cause meningitis and blood poisoning in immune-compromised individuals.

In pregnant women, Listeriosis can result in miscarriage, stillbirth, or birth of a baby suffering from the infection. Pregnant women are about 20 times likelier than others to be infected, with about one-third of Listeriosis cases occurring during pregnancy; the incidence of Listeriosis in newborns is 8.6 per 100,000 live births and the perinatal and neonatal mortality rate (stillbirths and early infant deaths) is 80 percent.

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Listeria monocytogenes is responsible for an estimated 2,500 illnesses in the United States annually, with about 200 in every 1,000 cases resulting in death. Listeriosis can take days, even weeks, to develop and can present in anything from a mild flu-like illness to meningitis and septicemia.

Last month we reported on an expanded recall by Torres Hillsdale Country Cheese, which involved certain Asadero and Oaxaca soft Mexican-style cheeses due to potential Listeria contamination; a Peregrina Cheese Corporation’s Queso Fresco cheese recall that was the third in a series of recalls by Peregrina Cheese, all due to possible Listeria contamination; and a Neco Foods recall involving 231 cases of seven-ounce, 32-ounce, and five-pound packages of Atlantis Brand SMOKED FISH DIP, because of a potential Listeria contamination.

Torres Hillsdale Country Cheese of Reading, Michigan is again announcing a recall of one of its cheese products over concerns of contamination with the serious, sometimes deadly, Listeria monocytogenes pathogen. This current recall involves Torres Hillsdale Country Cheese’s Oaxaca soft Mexican-style cheese, said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The recalled Oaxaca cheese was distributed to retails stores and delis in Illinois and Minnesota and was packaged in 10-pound balls labeled with the name “Torres Hillsdale Country Cheese LLC.” The recall involves production date 3/17/2009 and expiration date 5/20/2009. No illnesses have been reported in connection with the recalled products, to date. (more…)

Last week we wrote about an Alfalfa Sprout recall over possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination involving Amalgamated Produce, Inc.’s (API), Specialty Farms, Vermont Sprout House, Nature’s Promise, and BroccoSprouts products. That recall has since been extended to include two types of Crunchy Sprouts.

The extended recall includes crunchy sprouts labeled either Specialty Farms Organic Crunchy Sprouts or Organic Crunchy Pea Mix with a sell-by date code from 3/31/09 through 4/27/09 and which are packaged in net weight four-ounce plastic containers. The products contain UPC 8192400061, noted the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The prior recall notice concerned Specialty Farms, Vermont Sprout House, Nature’s Promise, and BroccoSprouts products with a sell by date code also from 3/31/09 through 4/27/09 and also packaged in net weight four-ounce plastic containers. (more…)

Alfalfa sprouts are being recalled today because of possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination. The recall involves Amalgamated Produce, Inc’s. (API), Specialty Farms, Vermont Sprout House, Nature’s Promise and BroccoSprouts products. All of the recalled sprouts carry sell by date codes of March 31 through April 27, 2009.

This recall has been issued as a precaution, and API maintains that no illness have been linked to the potentially tainted sprouts. As a result of laboratory analysis, Listeria monocytogenes was detected in a finished product sample collected by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets, the company said.
(more…)

Last week’s recall by Torres Hillsdale Country Cheese of Reading, Michigan has been expanded. The recall, which was announced by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) involves certain Asadero and Oaxaca soft Mexican-style cheeses due to potential Listeria contamination.

The original recall indicated that the Torres Hillsdale Country Cheese products were distributed in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Ohio, and Wisconsin. The expanded recall now also includes possibly Listeria-contaminated cheeses shipped to New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Florida, and Alabama, as well. (more…)

Torres Hillsdale Country Cheese of Reading, Michigan has recalled Asadero and Oaxaca soft Mexican-style cheeses due to potential Listeria contamination, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) just announced.

A routine sample of Asadero cheese, taken by an inspector from the Michigan Department of Agriculture’s Food and Dairy Division on February 23, 2009, was subsequently tested by the Michigan Department of Agriculture Laboratory and discovered to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. (more…)

Neco Foods, LLC of Lantana, Florida is recalling 231 cases of seven-ounce, 32-ounce, and five-pound packages of Atlantis Brand SMOKED FISH DIP, because it has the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has just announced.

The recalled “Atlantis brand Smoked Fish Dip” was distributed in Florida in the seven-ounce containers through retail stores, in the 32-ounce containers through club stores, and in the five-pound packages through food service distributors. The product is distributed in the following packages: (more…)

Some more Queso Fresco cheeses are being recalled over concerns of Listeria monocytogenes contamination, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) just announced. The FDA is warning consumers not to eat Queso Fresco Fresh Cheese Mexican style soft cheese (two specific lots) or any Queso Cotija Molido Mexican style grated cheese manufactured and distributed by Peregrina Cheese Corporation of New York City.

The Peregrina Cheese recall involves two lots of its Queso Fresco Fresh Cheese Mexican Style Soft Cheese and one lot of its Queso Cotija Molido Mexican Style Grated Cheese. The Queso Fresco Fresh Cheese comes in 14-ounce foil wrapped packages marked with lot number 4469 or 4477 affixed to each package on a white sticker and bears UPC number 8 17424 00024 6 and Plant # 36-8431. The Queso Cotija Molido Cheese comes in 15-ounce clear plastic bags that are marked with UPC number 8 17424 00027 7 and Plant # 36-1388, but does not contain a lot number or production date. (more…)