California Onion Listeria Scare Prompts Multi-State Recall
July 31st, 2012 tmccoy
Recent news about onions may do a lot more than just make you cry…it may make you quite sick. A recently announced onion recall has multiple states very worried over the possibility that the onions they are eating may be tainted.
The recall stems from Southern California, where a grower and food processing firm has had to issue multiple recalls of its onions. The firm, known as Gills Onions LLC, issued the voluntary recall of an entire day’s worth of onions because they might be contaminated with listeria monocytogenes. This bacteria may be found not only in whole oniosn, but also in diced, slivered and whole-peeled onions which originated in the plant.
Most troubling is the fact that these onions, including California, Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Montana, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah and Washington. Listeria monocytogenes can cause very serious and even fatal infections in children and older individuals with compromised immune systems. Even healthy individuals who come into contact with the bacteria may experience:
- high fever
- severe headache
- stiffness
- nausea
- abdominal pain
- diarrhea
Onion eaters should take note and be careful to look where their onion shipment originates from before eating.
