Recalls and Alerts: February 9, 2024

Here is today’s list of food safety recalls, product withdrawals, allergy alerts and miscellaneous compliance issues. The live links will take you directly to the official recall notices and company news releases that contain detailed information for each recall and alert.

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United States

OUTBREAK INVESTIGATION UPDATE: The FDA, CDC, and state and local partners are investigating a deadly decade-long Listeria monocytogenes outbreak that has been traced to queso fresco and cotija cheeses manufactured by Rizo-López Foods, Inc. of Modesto, California. Twenty-six outbreak cases have been confirmed in eleven states since mid-2014; twenty-three of the victims required hospitalization. The outbreak strain has been recovered from a sample of cotija cheese and from an environmental sample collected by FDA investigators during their inspection of the manufacturing facility. Multiple recalls have been announced. The FDA has assembled a list of 2024 recalls of food products associated with this outbreak. The list will be updated as additional recalls are announced.

Public Health Alert (Listeria outbreak): FSIS issues Public Health Alert for ready-to-eat (RTE) poultry burrito products containing Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulated dairy products that have been recalled by Rizo-Lopez Foods, due to potential Listeria monocytogenes contamination. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Food Safety Recall (Listeria outbreak): Fresh Express recalls Marketside Southwest Chopped Salad Kit (10.3 oz; Package code G364 & G002; Use by 1/14/2024 & 1/17/2024 (Package); Use by 3/3/2024 (condiment pack); UPC 681131305129) and Fresh Express Salsa! Ensalada Salad Kit (12.1 oz; Package codes S353 – S363 and S002 – S033; Use by 1/6/2024 – 1/18/2024 and 1/21/2024 – 2/20/2024 (Package); Use by 2/28/2024 – 4/4/2024 (condiment pack); UPC 071279309026) due to potential Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Food Safety Recall (Listeria outbreak): Ready Pac Foods, Inc. recalls four salad kits due to potential Listeria monocytogenes contamination. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Food Safety Recall (Listeria outbreak): Fresh & Ready Foods recalls four torta sandwiches (distributed between 01/21/2024 and 02/06/2024 and sold exclusively in locations in Arizona, California, Nevada, and Utah) due to potential Listeria monocytogenes contamination. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Food Safety Recall (Listeria outbreak): BrightFarms Inc. recalls BrightFarms Southwest Chipotle Crunch Kit (5.85 oz; Best by 12/31/23 – 2/22/24; UPC 8-50051-82500-4) due to potential Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Food Safety Recall (Listeria outbreak): Dole Fresh Vegetables, Inc. recalls multiple Dole-branded and private label salad kits due to potential Listeria monocytogenes contamination. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Allergy Alert: Zingerman’s Bakehouse recalls Zingerman’s Bakehouse Black Magic Brownie, Individually Packaged (4 oz; Lots 355 & 356; Sell by 2/11 & 2/12; UPC 844397000706) and Zingerman’s Bakehouse Black Magic Brownie 4 Pack (1 lb; Lots 355 & 356; Sell by 2/11 & 2/12; UPC 844397008795) due to undeclared walnuts.

Pet Food Safety Recall: Viva Raw recalls VIVA for cats duck (1 lb; Lot 22853), VIVA for dogs Chunked duck (1 lb; Lot 22853 11:04 1), VIVA for dogs GROUND duck (1 lb; Lot 22853) and VIVA PURE duck PETFOODMIXER (1 lb; Lot 22853) after being advised that the FDA found Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes in a sample of the product.

Canada

Food Safety Recall (Listeria outbreak): Fresh Express Incorporated recalls Fresh Express brand Salsa! Ensalada Salad Kit (343g; All Best Before dates from Jan-08-24 up to and including Feb-22-24; UPC 0 71279 30951 4) due to potential Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Food Safety Recall (Listeria outbreak): Dole Canada Company recalls certain Dole and President’s Choice brands of salad kits due to potential Listeria monocytogenes contamination. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Allergy Alert: OGGI Foods Inc. recalls OGGI brand Americana Pizza made with Beyond Meat (390g; Lot 23 200; Best before 2024 JL 19; UPC 6 28451 68477 0) due to undeclared milk.

Allergy Alert: Marché Al-Hilal (Montréal, QC) recalls BURGER DE POULET / Chicken burger (All lots) due to undeclared egg, sesame, wheat and soy.

Allergy Alert: Charcuterie Noël (Montréal, QC) recalls SMOKED MEAT DE PORC FABRICATION ARTISANAL / Old-fashioned smoked pork and SMOKED MEAT BŒUF FABRICATION ARTISANAL / Old-fashioned smoked beef (All lots) due to undeclared mustard.

Allergy Alert: BOSSA Prêt à manger (Montréal, QC) recalls multiple products due to undeclared allergens. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Food Safety Recall: Avril (Québec, QC) recalls Sand. poulet noix ble entie / Chicken sandwich on whole wheat (Best before 11 février 2024) due to possible E. coli contamination.

Food Safety Recall: La fromagerie Qualité Summum (Saint-Hyacinthe, QC) recalls various cheeses (Sold up to 8 February 2024) due to foreign matter contamination (pieces of metal). Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Europe

OUTBREAK INVESTIGATION (Norway): The Norwegian Food Safety Authority reports that between November 2023 and January 2024, several infants aged 5-6 months old fell ill after consuming products manufactured by Den Sorte Havre. The illnesses have been traced to the presence of Bacillus cereus toxins in the implicated products.

Allergy Alert (Belgium): Charles NV recalls Charles brand Salami classic (150g; Best before 14/02/2024, 27/02/2024 & 12/03/2024) due to undeclared milk, soy and mustard.

Allergy Alert (France): PRO NATURA recalls ProNatura brand Noix de cajou grillées au curry / Grilled cashews with curry (6 x 250g; Multiple Lot codes; Best before between 31/01/2024 and 29/11/2024) due to undeclared mustard.

Allergy Alert (France): PRO NATURA recalls Bioday brand Noix de cajou grillées au curry / Grilled cashews with curry (125g x 12 and 100g x 12; Best before between 31/01/2024 and 21/08/2024 and between 30/03/2024 and 23/10/2024, respectively) due to undeclared mustard.

Allergy Alert (Germany): AL HASNAA Group & HEKAYAD UG recalls Hekayat Sity – Moghrabieh CousCous / Moroccan couscous (800g; Lot N 2302219; Expiry to end 02/2025) due to undeclared wheat.

Allergy Alert (Italy): Euroverde soc. agr. S.r.l. recalls GOOD CHOICE brand Zuppa alla Toscana (620g; Lot 237022; Best before 25/02/2024) due to undeclared gluten.

Allergy Alert (Romania): CONTEC FOODS SRL recalls American Dip KFC (325g; All lot codes) due to undeclared gluten (wheat).

Food Safety Recall (France): MERICQ recalls FILET DE HARENG FUMES DOUX / Smoked herring filet (Lots 2095408, 2095955, 2096550; Use by 31/01/2024) due to Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Food Safety Recall (France): MERICQ recalls FILET DE HARENG FUMES DOUX / Smoked herring filet (Lot 2099138; Use by 09/02/2024) due to Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Food Safety Recall (France): MERICQ recalls FILETS MAQUEREAU FUMES POIVRE / Smoked mackerel with pepper (Lot 2096552 & 2097178; Use by 04/02/2024) due to Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Food Safety Recall (France): ETABLISSEMENTS BEILLEVAIRE recalls BEILLEVAIRE brand Fromage Mojette / Cheese (Lot MO02924; Best before 14/03/2024) due to Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Food Safety Recall (France): COOPERATIVE U recalls U brand Boudin noir oignon, 3x / Black sausage with onion, 3-pack (375g; Lot E3546130; Use by 13/02/2024) due to Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Food Safety Recall (France): SA SARA recalls poules entières , cuisses, filet et ailes / Whole raw chickens, legs, filets, and wings (Lot 00005825; Multiple Use-by dates) due to Salmonella contamination.

Food Safety Recall (France): AUCHAN recalls POUCE brand DINDE / Turkey (1 kg; Lot 0344168624; Use by 28/01/2024) due to Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Food Safety Recall (Italy): Salumificio Volpi recalls SALAME NAPOLI (80g; Lots L231220, L231227, L240103, L240105; Best before 08.02.2024, 15.02.2024, 22.02.2024, 24.02.2024) due to Salmonella contamination.

Food Safety Recall Update (UK): Mrs Kirkham’s Lancashire Cheese Ltd recalls various Lancashire Cheese products (All Use by dates up to 05 February 2024) due to possible shiga toxin-producing E. coli contamination.

Asia, Africa and the Pacific Islands

Allergy Alert (Singapore): Li Chuan Food Products Pte Ltd recalls Li Chuan’s Seafood Roll (750g; Expiry date 7 Jan 2026; Product of Vietnam) due to undeclared egg.

Food Safety Recall (Israel): Tea Wysotsky (Israel) Ltd recalls Zita brand Green Shakshuka (420g; All batches and date codes; Product of Italy) due to foreign matter contamination.

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Purina says, “no health or safety issues”

As of January 11, 2024, the public Facebook group Saving Pets One Pet @ A Time has received reports of 729 sick animals (547 dogs and 182 cats) in the USA, Ireland, UK, Serbia, Hungry & Canada.

One hundred seventy-seven (177) of the animals have died.

All of the sick pets were fed a Purina product.

Purina’s response

In a statement posted on the company’s website on January 5, 2024, Purina denied the existence of any health or safety issues with any of its products.

While maintaining its denial of responsibility for the illnesses, Purina has quietly offered to compensate some of the pet owners who reached out to complain directly to the company.

In one case, Purina volunteered to pay the costs of veterinary care for a customers sick pet. In another instance, the company offered a customer $300 in compensation “…as a goodwill gesture, not an admission of liability.”

What pet owners are reporting

This graphic, posted with permission of the Saving Pets One Pet @ A Time group administrator, summarizes the situation as of January 11, 2024, including symptoms that have been reported by pet owners.

The FDA encourages pet owners and veterinarians to report safety issues with pet foods directly to the federal agency. Here’s how to do so.

How to report a pet illness

The FDA relies heavily on reports from pet owners and veterinarians to alert them to safety issues with pet foods. Especially useful are reports that include veterinary information and details on the suspect food (brand, variety, batch codes, etc.).

Most of all, the FDA is looking for pet owners who still possess partial or unopened bags of the suspect food.

If your pet is sick or has died, and you suspect the pet food to be the cause, please ask your veterinarian to file an Adverse Event report with the FDA.

Whether or not a veterinarian agrees to file a report, pet owners can file directly with the FDA. Prepare to make your report by assembling as much information about your pet’s symptoms, any lab reports (eg., blood work), and whatever information you have on the specific product(s) you have fed your pet. This includes brand and variety names, lot code, expiration date, and bar code information, all of which can be found on the package.

There are two options for filing, which are explained on the FDA web page, How to Report a Pet Food Complaint

Option 1: Contact the FDA Consumer Complaint Coordinator for your state by telephone (in the case of California, there are separate coordinators for Northern and Southern California). The list of telephone numbers is available at: Consumer Complaint Coordinators.

Option 2: File on-line using the FDA Safety Reporting Portal. Simply click on the “Report as Guest” button and follow the step-by-step directions.

“An invaluable resource for busy pet owners” – Food Safety News

Available from all major on-line retailers, including:

The Purina Affair: One dog’s story

A note of explanation: Mindy is just one of many pet owners who believe a Purina product to be behind the illness or death of their dogs and cats. She has made a formal Consumer Complaint report to the FDA.

Mindy graciously agreed to share Snoops’s story with us in the hope that it will help to prevent other tragedies.

Snoops’ Story

Snoops fell ill the last week of October 2023.

“My 9-year old sweet boy…was playful, happy and just fine before this,” according to Mindy, his owner.

Then she opened a new bag of Purina Pro Plan food, and everything started to change.

“He started not feeling well, he had thrown up a few times, he stopped wanting to eat his food,” Mindy said. “I immediately suspected the food!! I stopped feeding it, called Purina. They said they had not had any complaints, which seemed funny to me because I was seeing complaints that same month on Chewy.

“One morning he woke up and could hardly walk or lift his head. I took him to the vet and had blood work done. His liver enzymes and something I think with the gallbladder were really high. He had a UTI. They admitted him to the pet hospital for a few days. The vet said yes, there was a possibility kibble could cause this! They had him on meds and fluids. His numbers dropped a little bit so they sent him home.”

After a short while, Snoops started going downhill. He developed jaundice, and Mindy’s veterinarian recommended an ultrasound. The specialist who reviewed the results expressed concern about the appearance of Snoops’s liver and pancreas.

“At this point I was trying anything to save my sweet baby,” Mindy said. “He wasn’t eating much. He lost a lot of weight. One night he started throwing up all night so the next day we admitted him back to the pet hospital.

“After a few days I knew he probably wasn’t going to make it…I knew we had to have him euthanized. I called my daughters to come say goodbye. I still didn’t want to make that decision to have my sweet baby put down, it broke my heart in a million pieces.

“Right before they were going to come in and euthanize him, I had alone time with him. I picked him up and put him on my chest against my heart like I always used to do. It was his comfort place. I told him it was OK to let go, this little boy just couldn’t fight anymore, that I would be ok and he could let go… he sighed deeply, contently and I felt him pass away in my arms”

Mindy’s message

“Snoops was my little soul mate, my little constant companion, my first fur baby, I loved him more than words! I am so angry at Purina that they seemed to have no care!! This was my baby’s life in your hands! They offered some coupons!

“I tried to spread the word to hopefully save other fur babys but so many were not willing to hear or believe it. I feel so guilty having fed that food and I wish so much I had known then what I know now, I tried so hard to save my sweet boy.”

The latest numbers

As of January 6, 2024, the public Facebook group Saving Pets One Pet @ A Time has received reports of 314 sick animals (233 dogs and 81 cats) in the USA and Canada.

Ninety-one (91) of them have died.

The FDA has not yet released any information on the number of complaints the agency has received.

What is the FDA doing?

FDA is aware of reports of pet illnesses and is in the process of evaluating those reports.

In response to our request for comment, we received the following statement on January 4, 2024:

“We encourage pet owners or their veterinarians to submit reports of illness or other adverse events associated with pet food directly to FDA by following the instructions on this page: How to Report a Pet Food Complaint.”
FDA spokesperson, January 4, 2024

How to report a pet illness

Most of all, the FDA is looking for pet owners who still possess partial or unopened bags of the suspect food.

If your pet is sick or has died, and you suspect the pet food to be the cause, please ask your veterinarian to file an Adverse Event report with the FDA.

There are two options for filing, which are explained on the FDA web page, How to Report a Pet Food Complaint

Option 2: File on-line using the FDA Safety Reporting Portal. Simply click on the “Report as Guest” button and follow the step-by-step directions.