When listeria contaminates food, the consequences can be severe. Earlier this year, a listeria outbreak linked to Dole packaged salads led to the deaths of at least two people and sickened 17 others across 13 states. That's why it's important to take food recall news seriously, especially when it's tied to a potentially lethal contaminant such as listeria. Read on to learn more about the latest product to be recalled, and what to do if you have it at home right now.
Earlier this year, the potential for listeria contamination led to a broad ice cream recall.
In February, an ice cream recall expanded widely as a result of the risks associated with potential listeria contamination. Royal Ice Cream Company of Manchester, Connecticut eventually expanded its original ice cream recall with an updated recall that included all products manufactured at the company's facility within their expiration dates.
The company took the broad recall as a safety measure because the ice creams had the potential to be contaminated with listeria monocytogenes, an organism that can even be deadly to people with compromised immune systems.
Irvington Seafood is currently recalling packages of its crabmeat.
Now, Irvington Seafood of Irvington, Alabama, is recalling its one-pound packages of its packages labeled "Crabmeat: Jumbo, Lump, Finger, and Claw meat." The packages now subject to the recall were distributed to distributors located in the U.S. southern region, in the states of Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Mississippi. The company announced the recall on June 2, and the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) published the recall notice on June 3.
The crabmeat is being recalled due to potential listeria contamination.
The company is recalling the crabmeat packages because they have the potential to be contaminated with listeria monocytogenes. This organism can cause "serious and sometimes fatal infections" in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems, according to the recall notice. In pregnant people, listeria infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths.
Even otherwise healthy people could suffer short-term symptoms from listeria infection, such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain, and diarrhea.
The company registered the potential for contamination on May 27 after FDA conducted testing on May 9. That testing revealed the presence of listeria on cooking equipment and in the cooking room.
No crabmeat has been tested, but the product could be infected as a result of cross-contamination. As a result, the company decided to conduct the voluntary recall, and has suspended production of the product while the company and the FDA continue to investigate the issue.
Fortunately, no illnesses have been reported so far in connection with this issue.
Here's how to tell if you have any of the recalled crab meat at home right now—and what to do about it if so.
The company packaged the crabmeat in one-pound packages, marked with license number AL 111-C along with the company name Irvington Seafood. To see if your package is subject to recall, check the bottom of the container for the following affected batch numbers: 130, 131, 132, 134, 137, 139, 141, 144, 145, 146,148, 150.
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