Missouri Firm Recalls Curry Chicken Salad for Possible Listeria Contamination

Recall date

May 3, 2014

Source

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA FSIS)

Recall number

027-2014

FDA classification

Class I

Sold / distributed

Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, Wisconsin

Why it was recalled

Product Contamination

Class I is the FDA’s most serious recall level: there is a reasonable probability that using this product will cause serious harm or death.

What was recalled

WASHINGTON, May, 3, 2014 Schnucks Kitchen, an O'Fallon, Mo., establishment, is recalling approximately 130 pounds of Curry White Meat Chicken Salad product due to possible contamination with Listeria monocytogenes , the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today. The Chicken salad product, in three-pound bags, was produced on April 24, 2014, and shipped to Schnucks retail grocery locations for deli distribution in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri and Wisconsin. The following product is subject to recall: 3-lb. sealed plastic bags containing iCURRY WHITE MEAT CHICKEN SALAD WITH WALNUTS.” [ View Label (PDFOnly)] Because the products were sold at deli counters, consumer packaging may vary. Plastic containers in various sizes may bear a purchase date between April 24, 2014 and May 2, 2014. Bulk case labels or packaging may bear the case code 0989674 or 0963124 as well as establishment number iEST. P-13562” inside the USDA mark of inspection. The problem was discovered when routine product sampling by FSIS personnel tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes on April 28, 2014. This product was held by the firm and did not enter commerce. Further investigative sampling by the company later determined bulk walnuts from an outside supplier, an ingredient used in the product, may have been contaminated with the pathogen. FSIS and the company have received no reports of illnesses associated with consumption of these products. FSIS is working in partnership with the Food and Drug Administration to further investigate the source of the contamination. Consumption of food contaminated with L. monocytogenes can cause listeriosis, a serious infection that primarily affects older adults, persons with weakened immune systems, and pregnant women and their newborns. Less commonly, persons outside these risk groups are affected. Listeriosis can cause fever, muscle aches, headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance and convulsions so…