An outbreak of listeria in ready-to-eat meat has led to a recall of 32,000 kg of products by South Africa. … [+]
An outbreak of Listeria linked to prepared meat and poultry products has prompted the Centers for Disease Control to issue an urgent warning. food safety warning. Eleven people from four states have been affected by the outbreak since Friday, November 22. A baby has died and nine people have been hospitalized in California.
The outbreak has been linked to several types of Yu Shang Food’s ready-to-eat meats, including chicken, duck and pork products. The company issued a recall after listeria tests showed some products were contaminated with the bacteria on October 21, 2024.
The CDC recommends that all products with “Yu Shang” and establishment number “P46684” or “EST. M46684” on the label, produced before October 28, 2024, immediately discard or return to the retailer. The full list and photos of the packaging of the affected products can be found here.
Listeria can affect anyone, but According to the CDCpregnant women and infants are particularly vulnerable to serious infections where the infection can become ‘invasive’ and spread beyond the intestines. Symptoms in people who are pregnant typically include fever and flu-like symptoms such as muscle aches and fatigue. In non-pregnant people, serious symptoms may include fever, flu-like symptoms, neck stiffness, headache, confusion, and balance problems. Symptoms usually appear within two weeks of consuming contaminated products. Anyone who experiences these serious symptoms after consuming a recalled product should contact a healthcare professional.
This outbreak is somewhat unusual because the detected cases associated with the products have already occurred several yearswith the first two discovered in 2021. There have been six cases so far in 2024, with cases reported in January, February, March and July so far. It is not known when the child died and the BBC reported that the child’s mother was also infected with Listeria.
Most outbreaks, such as the recent E. coli outbreak linked to prepared chopped onions served in McDonald’s restaurants, or the E. coli outbreak linked to prepared organic carrots, are linked to contamination that occurred within a specific, set time frame. However, such a prolonged outbreak could indicate recurring problems with the food preparation and storage processes in the facility, which could lead to multiple cases of listeria over time.