- Rizo-López Foods has issued a recall for certain cheese, yogurt, and sour cream products due to Listeria monocytogenes contamination.
- So far, 26 people have gotten sick from recalled products; two have died.
- People with the recalled products should dispose of them immediately.
Trader Joe's and Costco have pulled certain products from their shelves in connection to a larger recall of Rizo-López Foods, Inc. products, announced earlier this week.
All of the recalled foods—mainly dairy products—have been linked to a Listeria outbreak, which has resulted in more than two dozen illnesses and at least two deaths, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The recalled Trader Joe's products are those made with cotija cheese, which may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. The affected products and unit numbers include:
- Chicken Enchiladas Verde (sku 58292)
- Cilantro Salad Dressing (sku 36420)
- Elote Chopped Salad Kit (sku 74768)
- Southwest Salad (sku 56077)
At Costco, the recalled products are available in their Service Delis and include:
- Southwest Chicken Wrap with Sauce (item # 29443) purchased on or between October 27, 2023 and February 6, 2024.
- Chicken Street Taco Kits (item # 11545) purchased on or between January 25, 2024 and February 6, 2024.
Both Trader Joe's and Costco have warned customers that the recalled products should not be consumed and should be discarded or returned for a full refund.
The original recall announcement, shared Monday, included more than 50 dairy products made by Rizo-López Foods, Inc. Cheese, yogurt, and sour cream included in the recall are sold under the following brand names:
- 365 Whole Foods Market
- Tio Francisco
- Don Francisco
- Rizo Bros
- Rio Grande
- Food City
- El Huache
- La Ordena
- San Carlos
- Campesino
- Santa Maria
- Dos Ranchitos
- Casa Cardenas
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has a full list of all of the impacted products, along with photos of the packages, UPC numbers, and sell-by dates.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), these foods are linked to a nationwide Listeria monocytogenes outbreak that spans back to 2014.
Rizo Lopez Foods
Listeria monocytogenes is a bacterium that can cause a serious infection known as listeriosis. An estimated 1,600 people get listeriosis each year, and about 260 die from the infection.
Listeriosis can cause an intestinal illness, with symptoms like diarrhea and vomiting, or it can lead to an invasive illness that causes symptoms like fever, flu-like symptoms, headache, stiff neck, and seizures.
Pregnant people, newborns, older adults, and people with weakened immune systems are likely to have more severe side effects. Listeriosis can also lead to stillbirth, miscarriage, or premature delivery in pregnant people, along with life-threatening infection of the newborn.
“While infected pregnant women may experience only mild, flu-like symptoms, their infections can be passed on to the unborn child,” Darin Detwiler, LPD, MAEd, an associate teaching professor at Northeastern University and author of Food Safety: Past, Present, and Predictions, told Health.
He explained that it can take up to 70 days after exposure to Listeria for symptoms of listeriosis to develop, which can make it difficult to track down where the exposure might’ve come from.
“Most people have a hard time remembering what they ate one week ago—imagine trying to remember what you ate two months ago,” Detwiler said.
According to the CDC, the Listeria monocytogenes outbreak associated with the Rizo-López Foods recall began in June 2014 and was investigated from 2017 to 2021. Previous investigations identified queso fresco and similar cheeses as a potential outbreak source but couldn’t identify a specific brand.
The investigation was reopened in January after new illnesses were reported. The strain of Listeria linked to the outbreak was found in a cheese sample from Rizo-López Foods.
Overall, 26 people have been infected with Listeria tied to this outbreak across 11 states. Of those, 23 were hospitalized and two people died.
CDC officials noted that the outbreak is likely even larger, given that not everyone who has listeriosis symptoms seeks testing and medical care for the condition.
The CDC is urging anyone who has these products to avoid eating, selling, or serving them. The organization recommends people check their refrigerators and freezers for any of the impacted products and dispose of them immediately.
Since Listeria can survive in the fridge and sometimes spread to other foods and surfaces, it’s also a good idea to sanitize the fridge after removing recalled products.
Detwiler stressed the importance of listening to the recall advice, given how serious listeriosis can be.
“Anyone who has these products in their kitchen should either throw them away or return them to the place where they purchased them,” he said. “If you have eaten any of the recalled products, look for symptoms, including vomiting, nausea, persistent fever, muscle aches, severe headache, and neck stiffness.”
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