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Walmart, Trader Joe's and others are recalling meat products because of listeria


Walmart, Trader Joe's and others are recalling meat products because of listeria

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Hundreds of products are sold at the nation's largest grocery chains, including Walmart (WMT), Kroger (KR), 7-Eleven (SVNDY) and Trader Joe's were recalled due to concerns about listeria contamination.

BrucePac, an Oklahoma-based maker of precooked meats, almost issued a recall last week 10 million pounds of ready-to-eat meat and poultry products. The recall came after routine testing by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) revealed that some BrucePac products tested positive Listeria monocytogenes, a bacteria that can cause serious infections.

An FSIS investigation later identified ready-to-eat BrucePac chicken as the source of the disease Listeria monocytogenes. In response, the company recalled ready-to-eat meat and poultry products manufactured from June 19 to October 8. The recalled products are marked with establishment numbers 51205 or P-51205 inside or below the USDA inspection mark.

A complete list of the dozens of affected brands available nationwide can be found here Here. Products include salads, pasta, bowls and wraps.

There are currently no reports of illness in connection with the recall.

Additionally, FSIS is concerned that some of the recalled products may have been used by restaurants and other establishments and that these other businesses may have used affected meat and poultry in their own ready-to-eat products and may still be on store shelves.

In a separate recall, Oregon-based Reser's Fine Foods voluntarily withdrew some of its meal kits because they were made with BrucePac chicken, it said Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

“We are committed to providing safe and high quality products. We are working closely with the USDA to ensure all necessary measures are taken to ensure a safe food supply. “We will not resume production until we are sure the issue has been resolved,” BrucePac said in a statement opinion published on their website.

These recalls come just months after Boar's Head Provisions Co., a Virginia-based deli supplier, issued a recall of several deli meat products in late July after they were linked to one Listeria outbreak in several states. The recall included millions of pounds of the affected products, and Boar's Head even went so far as to close a facility due to numerous violations. At least 10 people died related to the outbreak and dozens more required hospitalizations.

Listeria monocytogenes can cause serious listeriosis infections in young children, the elderly, and people with weakened immune systems. The FDA warned that listeria infections in pregnant women could cause miscarriages and stillbirths.

Even in healthy people, a listeria infection can cause symptoms such as high fever, headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea.

An estimate In the United States, 1,600 people develop listeriosis each yearwith about 260 deaths per year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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