The CDC is weighing in on the deadly Fresh Express Listeria monocytogenes outbreak linked to that company’s bagged salads. Ten people are sick, all ten have been hospitalized, and one person, who lived in Pennsylvania, has sadly died.
The patient case count by state is: Illinois (1), Massachusetts (1), Michigan (1), New Jersey (2), New York (1), Ohio (1), Pennsylvania (2), and Virginia (1). Illness onset dates range from July 26, 2016 through October 19, 2021. The patient age range is from 44 to 95 years. Whole genome sequencing performed on isolates from sick people showed that they are closely related genetically, which means that people in this outbreak likely got sick from eating the same food.
Of the five people interviewed by public health investigators, four said they ate packaged salads of various types in the month before they got sick. Two persons specifically reported eating Fresh Express salads. The Michigan Department of Agriculture found the outbreak strain of Listeria monocytogenes on December 16, 2021. It was in a bag of Fresh Express Sweet Hearts Romaine Lettuce Sweet Butter Lettuce packaged salad taken from a grocery store.
Fresh Express recalled packaged salads produced at its facility in Streamwood, Illinois since November 20, 2021. Do not eat, sell, or serve these recalled salads. The government is working to see if more products may be contaminated.
The recalled salad brands include Fresh Express, Bowl & Basket, Giant Eagle, Little Salad Bar, Marketside, O Organics, Signature Farms, Simply Nature, Weis Fresh from the Field, and Wellsley Farms Organic. They all have codes Z324 through Z350. All use by dates of those products are recalled.
If you purchased any of those salads, discard them immediately even if some has been eaten and no one is sick. You should then clean your refrigerator to kill any remaining bacteria. Wash your hands with soap and water after cleaning and after handling these salads.
Symptoms of listeriosis, the illness caused by this pathogen, can take up to 70 days to appear. If you feel sick, see your doctor. You may be part of this deadly Fresh Express Listeria monocytogenes outbreak.
If you or a loved one have been sickened with a Listeria monocytogenes infection after eating recalled Fresh Express or other brands of these bagged salads, please contact our experienced attorneys for help at 1-888-377-8900 or text us at 612-261-0856. Our firm represents clients in lawsuits against grocery stores and food processors, and families in wrongful death cases.
