Eight Illnesses Nationwide from Listeria Tied to Veggie Recall

Eight people have become ill from eating frozen vegetables contaminated with listeria bacteria -- a problem that sparked a national recall of multiple food brands -- and two people later died, although not from the listeria infection, federal health officials say.

A national recall of frozen vegetables and fruit from stores in Maryland and elsewhere because of a serious and sometimes fatal contamination risk expanded this week to include Walmart's "Great Value" label. Affected brands include those store brands sold at Trader Joe’s, Sam’s Club, Safeway, Costco, and others.

The Centers for Disease Control says all eight people were hospitalized, including a patient from Maryland and another from Washington State who died. In both deaths, listeriosis was not considered to be a cause of death, the CDC says.

Federal privacy laws prevent officials from sharing details on the patient death, said Christopher Garrett, spokesman for the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. But, it is possible for a patient to be treated for one illness and have other health conditions, he said.

Garrett said he could not release the victim's age or county of residence.

“We’re urging people to check their freezers to make sure they don’t have the products on the FDA list,” Garrett said.

CRF Frozen Foods of Pasco, WA, has expanded its voluntary recall of 15 frozen food items to include all “frozen organic and traditional fruits and vegetables” -- 358 in total -- labeled under 42 different brand names. The recalled lines include Walmart's store brand, a Trader Joe's label, Kirkland label sold in Costco stores, Safeway Kitchens labels, and Wild Oats lines, according to the Food and Drug Administration.

The Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene says listeria bacteria is found in dust, soil, water, and sewage. Listeria can contaminate frozen food and survive over an extended period of time with long shelf lives of up to a few years, experts said in a news release, so it's important that consumers do not eat products in the recall.

The recalled food items that may be tainted have been sold in all 50 states and Canada.

For a complete listing of all recalled products, visit the FDA online.

Signs of Illness from Listeria

A listeria infection primarily affects pregnant women and their newborns, older adults, and persons with immune systems weakened by cancer, cancer treatments, or other serious conditions (like diabetes, kidney failure, liver disease, and HIV/AIDS), say Maryland health officials.

Someone with listeriosis generally has fever and muscle aches and can have a bloodstream infection or meningitis. Although people can sometimes develop listeriosis up to two months after eating contaminated food, symptoms usually start within several days, often with diarrhea. Listeriosis is treated with antibiotics. Anyone suspecting listeriosis should contact their health-care provider.

Symptoms include:

• Higher-risk persons: Symptoms can include fever, muscle aches, headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, and convulsions.
  
• Pregnant women: Pregnant women typically experience only fever and other non-specific symptoms. However, infection during pregnancy can lead to miscarriage, stillbirth, premature delivery, or life-threatening infection of the newborn.
  
• Healthy persons: Healthy persons rarely develop invasive listeriosis but can experience a milder illness with fever and diarrhea.

Recall Details, Numbers to Call

“We are performing this voluntary recall in cooperation with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) because these products have the potential to be contaminated withListeria monocytogenes,” the company said in a media release issued through the FDA.

Listeria contamination can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections. It is most especially dangerous to the young, frail and elderly, according to the CDC. It also poses a concern for those with weakened immune systems and women who are pregnant. Symptoms of infection include high fever, headaches, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea. Miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women are also possible.

CRF’s initial voluntary recall was announced just over a week ago after concerns about possible Listeriacontamination arose.

The recall now includes all products “manufactured or processed in CRF Frozen Foods’ Pasco facility since May 1, 2014,” the news release says. All affected products have best by or sell by dates between April 26, 2016, and April 26, 2018. The recall includes some 358 consumer products sold under 42 separate brand names.

The fruits and vegetables now part of the recall include: broccoli, butternut squash, corn, Italian beans, kale, lima beans, sweet potatoes, blueberries, cherries and more.

No illnesses have been reported to date, but the company is recalling the products as a precaution. The Listeria was discovered through routine testing by state health officials in Ohio, the FDA said in a release.

Anyone who purchased products included in the recall may return them to the store where they were purchased for a refund. Consumers with questions can call CRF's consumer hotline at 844-551-5595, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.

CRF suspended operations at its Pasco facility on April 25. A thorough review will be conducted before operations resume.

All retailers who received shipments of the potentially contaminated products have been notified, the company said. Products involved in the recall were shipped to all 50 states and some Canadian provinces. Some of the brand names included are Bybees, Columbia River Organics, Organic by Nature, Earth’s Pride, Correct Choice, Chef Maxwell, Great Value and Wild Oats.

Consumers are urged not to consume these products. Consumers who purchased these products may take them back to the store where they purchased them for a refund or simply discard them.

Consumers seeking information may call 844-551-5595 Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Pacific Standard Time, the FDA says.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons, by Amada44 - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=36399463