More Listeria cases linked to contaminated prepackaged salad

Dole issued a precautionary recall of the salads on Friday, after a sample test detected listeria bacteria in a random bag. The FDA said no illnesses had been…

Dole issued a precautionary recall of the salads on Friday, after a sample test detected listeria bacteria in a random bag. The FDA said no illnesses had been reported at that time. (FDA)

by: Isabella Colello

Posted: Dec 28, 2021 / 12:01 PM EST

Updated: Dec 28, 2021 / 12:01 PM EST

(WWTI) — The death toll connected to an ongoing listeria outbreak is growing.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed that as of December 27, three individuals have died from Listeria outbreaks linked to packaged salads. This is across two separate outbreaks.

The first outbreak the CDC is investigating is linked to packaged salads produced by Fresh Express. To date, there have been ten illnesses and hospitalizations across eight states.

Fresh Express previously recalled several brands of packaged salad products. The recall includes all Use-By Dates with product codes Z324 through Z350. Brands in this recall include Fresh Express, Bowl & Basket, Giant Eagle, Little Salad Bar, Marketside, O Organics, Signature Farms, Simply Nature, Weis Fesh from the Field and Wellsley Farms Organic.

The second outbreak is linked to packaged salads products by Dole. As of December 27, there have been 16 illnesses, 12 hospitalizations and two deaths attributed to this outbreak.

Dole also previously recalled several brands included Ahold, Dole, Kroger, Lidl, Little Salad Bar, Marketside, Naturally Better, Nature’s Promise, Simply Nature. Affected products include mixed greens, garden salads, Caesar kits and many other types of salads in bags or clamshells with “Best if used by” dates from 11/30/21 through 1/08/22.

The CDC urges all to not eat any recalled packaged salads, and instead throw them away or return them to where the product was bought.

The CDC also said to call a healthcare provider immediately if Listeria infection symptoms appear after eating packages of salads. Those who are not pregnant may experience headaches, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, convulsions, fever and muscle aches.

Listeria can also cause common food poisoning symptoms such as diarrhea and fever. Listeria can cause severe illness, known as invasive listeriosis, when the bacteria spread beyond the gut to other parts of the body. This is most common in pregnant people, adults 65-years-or-old and people with weakened immune systems.