Time to check your frozen fruit and vegetable packages: CRF Frozen Foods has expanded a voluntary recall to include about 358 products under 42 different brands because of potential listeria contamination.
A full list of the items to avoid was included in the company's press release on Monday. The recall includes all frozen organic and nonorganic fruit and vegetable products manufactured or processed at CRF's facility in Pasco, Wash., since May 1, 2014.
The products have a "best by" or "sell by" date between April 26, 2016, and April 26, 2018, CRF said. The food has been sold across the U.S. and in Canada in grocers including Safeway, Trader Joe's and Costco.
Initially, the company voluntarily recalled 15 frozen vegetable items after a routine state health inspection in Ohio detected listeria. The company says it suspended operations at the Pasco plant on April 25 "so a thorough review could be conducted."
CRF products have been linked to a listeria outbreak that has infected eight people in three states since September 2013, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Two of those people died, but the CDC says that "listeriosis was not considered to be a cause of death."
If you figure out that you've bought recalled products, the CDC recommends you throw them away in a closed plastic bag, clean the area where they were stored and then wash your hands with warm water and soap. Think you've eaten recalled products? If you have symptoms — usually fever and muscle aches, sometimes preceded by gastrointestinal issues — "consider seeking medical care," the CDC says.
"The disease primarily affects older adults, pregnant women, newborns, and adults with weakened immune systems," the health agency notes.
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