Listeria contamination and repeated unsanitary conditions have prompted the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to take legal action against a Chicago-area maker of ready-to-eat sandwiches and produce.
Under a consent decree filed in U.S. District Court in the Northern District of Illinois, Triple A Services Inc. and its owners and operators have agreed to stop producing and distributing the sandwiches and produce. The action, announced this week by the FDA, follows a warning letter to the company that the FDA issued in April. It was prompted by conditions favorable to Listeria growth and a history of food safety violations. the FDA said in a press release.
The decree requires Triple A to hire a sanitation expert to help establish an effective sanitation program, to comply with FDA regulations and to eliminate Listeria contamination from company facilities. No illnesses were reported.
The government’s complaint outlines Triple A’s failure to comply with Current Good Manufacturing Practice and seafood Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) regulations.
Listeriosis is a potentially deadly illness caused by the bacteria Listeria monocytogenes. The deadliest outbreak of foodborne illness this year in the United States was linked to Listeria on cantaloupe from Jensen Farms in Colorado. Thirty-one people died and at least 146 were injured in 28 states during that outbreak.
“FDA took these aggressive actions because Triple A Services continued to violate current good manufacturing practice regulations and allow for conditions that could affect the health of consumers,” said Dara Corrigan, the FDA’s associate commissioner for regulatory affairs.
