Almark Foods expands its first egg recall of hard boiled egg products for possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination to include all hard-boiled eggs that were manufactured at the firm’s Gainesville, Georgia facility. This is a secondary recall of sorts because the brand names of the recalled products is so vast. The hard-boiled eggs are associated with a deadly multistate Listeria monocytogenes outbreak that has sickened at least seven people in five states.
All retail, pillow pack, pouch pack, frozen diced, and protein kit products are recalled. The FDA notified Almark Foods about the outbreak on December 18, 2019. A more recent FDA sample from a facility matched the outbreak strain, suggesting the possibility that the strain may have remained present in teh facility. Listeria monocytogenes bacteria can be remarkably persistent and difficult to eradicate once it’s been established in a building.
So Almark decided to expand the recall for all product that remains within its shelf life. This includes product with “Best If Used By” dates up through March 2, 2020. Almark has also temporarily suspended all production at its Gainesville plant.
The recalled products can be identified by viewing the “Best If Used By” date coding on the package. If the code starts with the prefix “G,” the product was made at the Gainesville plant and is recalled. Products with the prefix “N” or “Y” are not part of this recall. For Protein Kit products, check the code on the actual egg package within the kit.
You can see the long list of recalled products at the FDA web site. The brands include 7 Select, Almark Foods, Best Choice, CMI, Dairy Fresh, Deb-El, Egglands Best, Everyday Essentials, Farmers Hen House, Food Club, Fresh Thyme, Giant Eagle, Great Day, Great Value, Inpsired Organics, Kirkland Signature, Kroger, LIDL, Lucerne, Members Mark, Naturally Better, Nellie’s, O Organics, Peckish, Pete & Gerry’s, Rainbow Farms, Rembrandt Foods, ShopRite, Simple Truth Organics, Sunshine, Vital Farms, and Wild Harvest. The eggs were sold in different product sizes, including 6 count hard cooked eggs, 1 count hard cooked eggs, 12 count cage free hard cooked eggs, and more. They were distributed nationwide.
If you purchased any of these products, do not eat them. Throw them away in a sealed package in a secure garbage can, or take them back to the place of purchase for a refund.
Wash your hands after handling these products. Clean out your fridge with a mild bleach solution after you discard the eggs. And if you ate these products, watch yourself for symptoms of listeriosis, especially if you are pregnant, for the next 70 days. If you do get sick, see your doctor.
