The Kroger Company just issued a 15-state spinach recall over possible contamination with the dangerous, sometimes deadly, Listeria pathogen, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) just announced.
Kroger is asking consumer to check their refrigerators for Kroger Fresh Selections Tender Spinach in 10-ounce packages that bear UPC 0001111091649 and a “best if used by” date of September 16.
The recalled Kroger Fresh Selections Tender Spinach was supplied by NewStar Fresh Foods LLC.
The firm advises customers to return the items to stores for either a full refund or a replacement. Customers can visit www.kroger.com/recall for more information.
Stores under the following names and in the following states are included in this recall:
• Kroger stores: Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia, Georgia, Alabama, North Carolina, South Carolina, central and eastern Tennessee, and Michigan.
• Kroger, Jay C, Owen’s, Pay Less, Scott’s, and Food 4 Less stores: Indiana, Illinois, and eastern Missouri.
• Dillons, Baker’s, and Gerbes stores: Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska.
Kroger said it has removed the recalled spinach from store shelves and initiated its Customer Recall Notification system. Customers who may have purchased the recalled spinach will receive register receipt messages and/or automated telephone calls. Kroger is also placing signs in stores’ produce departments. Any opened or unopened products included in this recall should not be consumed. Krogers can be reached, toll-free, at 1.800.KROGERS.
The Listeria pathogen is unique because it thrives in colder temperatures, such as those found in refrigerated environments. Listeria also has an unusually long incubation period—up to 70 days—according to experts. The pathogen also well tolerates heat and dry temperatures, adding further challenges to the pathogen’s eradication and length to expected reporting time frames.
Listeriosis, the food borne disease caused by the Listeria pathogen, is dangerous and can be deadly, causing serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Healthy individuals may suffer short-term symptoms, such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. In pregnant women,
Listeriosis can result in miscarriage, stillbirth, or birth of a baby suffering from the infection. Pregnant women are about 20 times likelier than others to be infected, with about one-third of all Listeriosis cases occurring during pregnancy. Listeriosis can also kill fetuses, prompt premature births, and can lead to hearing loss or brain damage in newborns and neurological effects and cardio respiratory failure in adults.
