Rep. DeLauro (D CT-03) and the Food Safety Caucus have a message for the FDA: Get Raw Farm Cheese off shelves now. That cheese is linked to an E. coli O157:H7 outbreak that has sickened at least seven people in three states. Raw Farm is the largest producer of raw dairy in the United States.
Epidemiological evidence has linked the cheese to the illnesses. State partners are testing the cheese for pathogenic bacteria, but results are not yet available. The FDA can force a recall if a company refuses to voluntarily recall unsafe food. And Raw Farm has refused the FDA’s recommendation.
The message is, in part, “The FDA recommended that Raw Farm voluntarily remove its raw cheese products from sale after they determined it was the likely source of an ongoing E. coli outbreak. Raw Farm refused. We have one message for Raw Farm and FDA: get it off the shelves – now.
“Two people have been hospitalized because of this outbreak, with several more falling ill. More than half of the illnesses were in children aged 3 or younger. This cannot stand. If Raw Farm refuses to take unsafe products off the market, FDA must use its mandatory recall authority and take them to court. A company should not be able to flatly refuse a recall recommendation. That puts consumers health at risk to protect the profits of a corporation.
“FDA must act so consumers are not subject to the whims of corporations that would put their profits over public health. And if mandatory authority needs to be strengthened, the Food Safety Caucus stands ready to tackle this issue at FDA’s request.”
If you bought this cheese, do not eat it. You can throw it away in a secure trash can, or take it back to the store where you purchased it for a full refund.
If you ate this cheese, or gave it to others to eat, monitor your and their health for the symptoms of an E. coli O157:H7 infection, and hemolytic uremic syndrome, for the next week or two. If anyone gets sick, see your doctor.
