When you buy food at a store, especially from a well-known brand or a major retailor, you expect the food to be clean and free of anything that can make you seriously ill. Unfortunately, that is not always the case. Food recalls happen all too often due to tainted products. Two separate recalls were recently issued for this very reason. On Thursday, Dole Fresh Vegetables recalled bags of salad after a sample of Dole Italian salad tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes, which can lead to miscarriage or stillbirth in pregnant women. The recall affects bags of Italian Blend, Fresh Selections Italian Style Blend, Little Salad Bar Italian Salad and Marketside Italian Style Salad with the use-by date of March 12. The recalled products were sold in 15 states, including Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Virginia.
Signs of listeria contamination include fever, muscle aches, nausea, diarrhea, confusion, loss of balance and convulsion, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Pregnant women and people who have a compromised immune system are the most vulnerable to these effects.
Meanwhile, another recall was issued on March 8th for dried fruits sold at Costco. Freeze-dried fruit maker Oregon Freeze Dry recalled Kirkland Signature Real Sliced Fruit because the products may be contaminated with salmonella. The recall, which involved nearly 60,000 cases, affected cases with a “best by” date between Feb. 14, 2015 and March 11, 2015. Each case contained 20 single-serving pouches of dried fruits, such as apples, strawberries, and bananas, according to WFAA 8.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) also alerted consumers about the recall said that consumers affected by the recall were contacted by phone and mail. The recall letter said that exposure to salmonella “can cause serious infections in young children, frail or elderly people and those with weakened immune systems. Healthy persons infected with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain.” Cases were distributed to the following states at Costco Wholesale stores: Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Wisconsin, and Puerto Rico.
