Whole Foods Market In Austin Recalls Cheese Over Listeria Fears

AUSTIN, TX — Whole Foods Market is recalling some cheese items from nine stores — including the local store located at The Domain shopping center in North Austin — over fears of possible Listeria contamination, regulators announced Tuesday.

U.S. Food & Drug Administration officials said the voluntary recall is centered on the chain's Explorateur French Triple Crème cheese products from nine stores located in Texas, Arkansas, Connecticut, Illinois, New Mexico and New Jersey in what was categorized as an "abundance of caution."

The Austin store located at 11920 Domain Dr. is among those recalling the products. Elsewhere in Texas, two stores in El Paso also are participating in the voluntary recall.

The cheese, food regulators said, has the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes — an organism that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, pregnant women and others with weakened immune systems. Although healthy individuals may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea, Listeria infection can cause miscarriages, stillbirths and fetal infection among pregnant women. No illnesses have been reported to date, federal regulators noted.

The recall includes Explorateur French Triple Crème cheese (under the names Explorateur, Explorateur French Triple Crème Cheese and Explorateur Triple Crème French Cheese) which were both cut and packaged in clear plastic wrap, as well as sold in branded 8 oz. packages. All cheese had "sell by" dates from 02/15/2018 through 04/03/2018. The issue was discovered when Whole Foods Market was notified by a distributor of a positive test result for Listeria monocytogenes.

The products sold as Explorateur French Triple Crème at the following Whole Foods Market stores with scale labels beginning with PLU code 0294317:

• 90 E. Putnam Avenue, Greenwich, CT
• 222 Main Street, Madison, NJ
• 701 Bloomfield Avenue, Montclair, NJ

The products sold as Explorateur Triple Crème French Cheese at the following Whole Foods Market stores with scale labels beginning with PLU code 203971:

• 7245 Lake Street, River Forest, IL
• 760 Waukegan Road, Deerfield, IL

The products sold as Explorateur at the following Whole Foods Market stores with scale labels beginning with PLU code 293693:

• 753 Cerillos Road, Santa Fe, NM
• 100 Pitt Street, El Paso, TX

The products sold as Explorateur in 8 oz. branded packages at the following Whole Foods Market stores with UPC codes 339001000408 and lot codes H10, H010, H11 or H011:

• 753 Cerillos Road, Santa Fe, NM
• 100 Pitt Street, El Paso, TX
• 7245 Lake Street, River Forest, IL
• 760 Waukegan Road, Deerfield, IL
• 501 Bowman Road, Little Rock, AR
• 11920 Domain Drive, Austin, TX

Customers who purchased these products at Whole Foods Market can bring a valid receipt into stores for a full refund. Consumers with additional questions can call 1-844- 936-8255 between the hours of 7 a.m. and 10 p.m. CST, Monday through Friday, or 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. CST Saturday through Sunday.

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