According to news reports, New York State Agriculture Commissioner Richard Ball is warning consumers not to eat Toma Celena Raw Milk Alpine Table Cheese because it may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes bacteria. The cheese is made by Cooperstown Cheese Company in Milford.
The recalled product is packaged in a white butcher paper covered wheel or in vacuum sealed plastic. The plant number on the product is 36-8524 and the code is 51017. All products with this code are recalled. The cheese was sold in Delhi, Hudson, Ithaca, Menands, Oneonta, Ontario, Peekskill, Phoenicia, Roxbury, and Tannersville, New York.
A sample of the cheese was tested by the state food laboratory and was found to be contaminated. The company was told about this set on October 6, 2017 and the company recalled the product. The test results were confirmed on Friday, October 13, 2017. No information about this recall has been posted on the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets website. No illnesses have been reported to date.
If you bought this product, do not eat it. Throw it away in a sealed container, or take it back to the place of purchase for a refund. Wash your hands after handling this product. Then clean out your refrigerator with a mild bleach solution to kill bacteria. Listeria monocytogenes bacteria can grow at refrigerator temperatures.
If you ate this cheese, watch yourself for the symptoms of listeriosis for the next 70 days. Those symptoms include high fever, stiff neck, severe headache, nausea, and diarrhea. Pregnant women can suffer miscarriage or stillbirth if they contract this infection, even though they are only mildly ill with what seems like the flu. If you do get sick, see your doctor.
