The new deadly Florida Listeria monocytogenes outbreak is linked to ice cream, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). As a result of the investigation, Big Olaf Creamery of Sarasota, Florida is contacting retail locations to recommend they not sell their product. Anyone who has any Big Olaf Creamery brand ice cream at home should discard it immediately, even if some has been consumed and no one has been ill.
The case count by state remains at: Colorado (1), Florida (12), Georgia (1), Illinois (1), Kansas (1), Massachusetts (2), Minnesota (1), New Jersey (1), New York (2), and Pennsylvania (1). The patient age range is from less than one to 92. Five people got sick during a pregnancy, and one illness resulted in a fetal loss. The person who died lived in Illinois.
Public health officials interviewed people about what they ate before they got sick. Of the 17 people interviewed, 14, or 82%, said they ate ice cream. Among 13 people who remembered details, six reported eating Big Olaf Creamery ice cream or eating ice cream at locations that may have been supplied by that brand. Big Olaf Creamery ice cream is only sold in Florida; all of the patients either live in Florida or visited there before becoming ill.
No recall has been issued yet. But consumers should still heed this warning and discard any of this product they may have purchased. Then they should clean any areas, including the freezer, containers, countertops, and serving utensils that may have touched Big Olaf ice cream products with a mild bleach solution.
Listeria monocytogenes bacteria can grow at refrigerator temperatures, and freezing doesn’t kill it. That’s why its presence in foods like ice cream is so dangerous. Learn more about how Listeria gets into ice cream here.
Symptoms of listeriosis, the illness caused by this pathogen, can take up to 70 days to appear, although most people get sick within two weeks. Symptoms may begin with nausea and diarrhea, and include a high fever, stiff neck, muscle aches, and severe headache. Pregnant women may think they have a mild case of the flu, but this illness can cause infection in the newborn, premature labor, stillbirth, and miscarriage.
If you have eaten Big Olaf ice cream and have been ill with those symptoms, see your doctor. You may be part of this deadly Florida Listeria monocytogenes outbreak.
If you have been sickened with a Salmonella infection, please contact our experienced attorneys for help with a possible lawsuit 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.
