A nationwide recall of meat and poultry products potentially contaminated with listeria expanded to nearly 12 million pounds this week and now includes ready-to-eat meals sent to U.S. schools, restaurants and major retailers, federal officials said.
The updated recall includes prepared salads, burritos and other foods sold at stores including Costco, Trader Joe's, Target, Walmart and Kroger.
The meat used in those products was processed at a Durant, Oklahoma, manufacturing plant operated by BrucePac. The Woodburn, Oregon-based company sells precooked meat and poultry to industrial, foodservice and retail companies across the country.
Possible contamination was discovered after the Food Safety and Inspection Service performed routine testing of products containing ready-to-eat poultry produced by BrucePac. The products tested positive for listeria monocytogenes.
The FSIS carried out more testing that identified BrucePac Ready-To-Eat chicken as the source of the listeria monocytogenes, according to the USDA.
Listeria monocytogenes is a bacteria that can be found in soil, water, decaying vegetation and animals, the Food and Drug Administration said.
No illnesses have been confirmed in connection with the recall, USDA officials said. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has not launched an outbreak investigation, a spokesperson said.
The recall, issued on Oct. 9, includes foods produced between May 31 and Oct. 8. The USDA has posted a 342-page list of hundreds of potentially affected foods, including chicken wraps sold at Trader Joe's, chicken burritos sold at Costco and many types of salads sold at stores such as Target and Walmart. The foods were also sent to school districts and restaurants across the country.
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The recalled foods can be identified by establishment numbers “51205 or P-51205†inside or under the USDA mark of inspection. Consumers can search on the USDA recall site to find potentially affected products. Such foods should be thrown away or returned to stores for refunds, officials said.
Symptoms can occur quickly or up to 10 weeks after eating contaminated food. The infections are especially dangerous for older people, those with weakened immune systems or who are pregnant.
When people eat food contaminated with listeria monocytogenes, they can develop a disease called listeriosis which can range in severity.
Mild symptoms may include fever, muscle aches, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, while severe symptoms may include headaches, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, convulsions and even death.
About 1,600 people are infected with listeria bacteria each year in the U.S. and about 260 die, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The FSIS is “concerned some products may be available for use in restaurants, institutions, schools and other establishments,†and advises consumers to throw these products away or return them to the place of purchase.
Founded in 1949, family-owned BrucePac produces precooked proteins that it sells to other companies, which repackage or use the products as ingredients in other foods.
The company operates two USDA processing facilities that have the capacity to process millions of pounds of meat and poultry per week.
"We are working closely with USDA to ensure that all necessary actions are taken to ensure a safe food supply," BrucePac said in a statement. "We will not resume production until we are confident the issue has been resolved."
The same type of bacteria is responsible for an outbreak tied to Boar's Head deli meat that killed at least 10 people since May.
Tribune News Service contributed to this report.
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