Deerfield-News. com-From CDC-UPDATE AND ORIGINAL WARNING-BUGS, MOLD AND MILDEW FOUND AT BOARS HEAD VIRGINIA PLANT
SOURCE CDC-8-28-2024
A CDC Food Safety Alert update regarding a multistate outbreak of Listeria monocytogenes infections has been posted at https://www.cdc.gov/listeria/outbreaks/delimeats-7-24.html
Key Points:
- Since the last update on August 8, 2024, 14 more illnesses have been reported bringing the total to 57. All 57 people have been hospitalized and 9 deaths have now been reported.
- The 6 new deaths include one from Florida, one from Tennessee, one from New Mexico, one from New York and two from South Carolina.
- This is the largest listeriosis outbreak since the 2011 outbreak linked to cantaloupe.
- Everyone should check their homes for any remaining recalled Boar’s Head products since they can have long a shelf-life. Look for “EST. 12612” or “P-12612” inside the USDA mark of inspection on the product labels. Some of the products have sell by dates into October 2024.
- Listeria is a hardy germ that can remain on surfaces, like meat slicers, and foods, even at refrigerated temperatures. It can also take up to 10 weeks for some people to have symptoms of listeriosis.
What You Should Do:
- Do not eat recalled deli products. Throw them away or contact stores about returns.
- People who are at higher risk for getting sick with Listeria, such as those who are pregnant, are aged 65 or older, or have a weakened immune system, should always avoid eating meats sliced at deli counters, unless heated to an internal temperature of 165°F or until steaming hot just before serving.
- Clean your refrigerator, containers, and surfaces that may have touched sliced deli meats.
- Call your healthcare provider if you have symptoms of Listeriaand recently ate meats sliced at deli counters.
- Businesses that received recalled meats should take extra precautions like cleaning and sanitizing and throwing away opened sliced meats and cheeses at delis. Businesses should also follow USDA-FSIS best practices for controlling Listeria contamination in deli areas.
About Listeria:
- Listeria can cause severe illness (known as invasive listeriosis) when the bacteria spread beyond the gut to other parts of the body.
- Pregnant people typically experience only fever, fatigue, and muscle aches. However, Listeria infection during pregnancy can lead to miscarriage, stillbirth, premature delivery, or life-threating infection of the newborn.
- People who are not pregnant may experience headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, and convulsions, in addition to fever and muscle aches.
- Symptoms of severe illness usually start 1 to 4 weeks after eating contaminated food with Listeria but may start as early as the same day or as late as 70 days after.
If you have questions about cases in a particular state, please call that state’s health department.
Thank you,
CDC Media Support Branch
404-639-3286
Boar’s Head Provisions Co. Expands Recall for Ready-To-Eat Meat and Poultry Products Due to Possible Listeria Contamination
FSIS Announcement
The problem was discovered when FSIS was notified that a liverwurst sample collected by the Maryland Department of Health tested positive for L. monocytogenes. The Maryland Department of Health, in collaboration with the Baltimore City Health Department, collected an unopened liverwurst product from a retail store for testing as part of an outbreak investigation of L. monocytogenes infections. Further testing determined the product sample tested positive for the outbreak strain. Anyone concerned about illness should contact a healthcare provider.
FSIS is working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and state public health partners to investigate the multistate outbreak of L. monocytogenes infections linked to meats sliced at delis. As of July 30, 2024, 34 sick people have been identified in 13 states, including 33 hospitalizations and two deaths. Samples were collected from sick people from May 29, 2024, to July 12, 2024. The investigation is ongoing, and FSIS continues to work with the CDC and state partners. The CDC Food Safety Alert, Listeria Outbreak Linked to Meats Sliced at Delis, will continue to be updated with the latest investigation details.
Consumption of food contaminated with L. monocytogenes can cause listeriosis, a serious infection that primarily affects people who are pregnant, aged 65 or older, or with weakened immune systems. Less commonly, persons outside these risk groups are affected.
Listeriosis can cause fever, muscle aches, headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance and convulsions sometimes preceded by diarrhea or other gastrointestinal symptoms. An invasive infection spreads beyond the gastrointestinal tract. In people who are pregnant, the infection can cause miscarriages, stillbirths, premature delivery or life-threatening infection of the newborn. In addition, serious and sometimes fatal infections can occur in older adults and persons with weakened immune systems. Listeriosis is treated with antibiotics. Persons in the higher-risk categories who experience flu-like symptoms within two months after eating contaminated food should seek medical care and tell the health care provider about eating the contaminated food.
FSIS is concerned that some product may be in consumers’ refrigerators and in retail deli cases. Consumers who have purchased these products are urged not to consume them and retailers are urged not to sell these products with the referenced sell by dates. These products should be thrown away or returned to the place of purchase. Consumers who have purchased these products are also urged to clean refrigerators thoroughly to prevent the risk of cross-contamination.
FSIS recommends retail delis clean and sanitize all food and non-food surfaces and discard any open meats and cheeses in the deli. Retailers may refer to FSIS’ guideline, Best Practices Guidance for Controlling Listeria monocytogenes in Retail Delicatessens, for information on steps to prevent certain ready-to-eat foods that are prepared or sliced in retail delis and consumed in the home, such as deli meats and deli salads, from becoming contaminated with L. monocytogenes.
FSIS routinely conducts recall effectiveness checks to verify recalling firms notify their customers of the recall and that steps are taken to make certain that the product is no longer available to consumers. When available, the retail distribution list(s) will be posted on the FSIS website at www.fsis.usda.gov/recalls.
Consumers with questions regarding the recall can contact Boar’s Head Provisions Co., Inc., Customer Service at 1-800-352-6277. Media with questions can contact Elizabeth Ward, Vice President of Communications, Boar’s Head Provisions Co., Inc., at [email protected].
Consumers with food safety questions can call the toll-free USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline at 888-MPHotline (888-674-6854) or send a question via email to [email protected]. For consumers that need to report a problem with a meat, poultry, or egg product, the online Electronic Consumer Complaint Monitoring System can be accessed 24 hours a day at https://foodcomplaint.fsis.usda.gov/eCCF/.
