Listeria fears prompt recall of vegetables
Products pulled from several grocery chains
Some big supermarket chains and food suppliers have issued recalls for bags and packages of fresh-cut vegetables across the U.S. because of potential listeria contamination reported by a major industry supplier.
Among the chains that have issued notices are Whole Foods Market, Meijer and Albertsons. In addition, the supplier, Mann Packing of Salinas, Calif., also issued a recall that resulted in products being pulled from the shelves at such big chains as Walmart and Trader Joe’s.
At issue are the many products that contain vegetables sourced from Mann Packing. The recalls stem from a single test of a single product that occurred in Canada, and no illnesses have been reported, said Gina Nucci, marketing director for Mann.
With retailers pulling recalled food from shelves, Nucci urged consumers to return any of the affected products to the store where they bought it.
Among the biggest retailers in the recall is Meijer, a supermarket chain based in Grand Rapids, Mich. It said it has 39 fresh vege-
table products covered by the recall. They include vegetable trays, broccoli florets, asparagus spears and an “autumn harvest salad.” The food was sold in stores in Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin and available
for purchase through Friday.
Albertsons’ recall includes some seafood-based meal kits that included fresh vegetables as ingredients.
Some of the fallout from the Mann recall:
uWhole Foods is recalling salads from 10 northern California stores, such as Veggie Power Blend, Sesame Chicken Power Salad and Mexican Chicken Power Salad. All were sold by the pound at salad bars.
uRandalls, Tom Thumb and Albertsons stores in Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas are recalling Ready. Chef. Go! seafood meal bags that include cut vegetables. At issue are those with sell-by dates through Oct. 22 that are packaged in clear cooking bags and are sold from refrigerated cases, including numerous fish filet and shrimp kits.
uAlbertsons, Safeway, Vons and Pak N Save stores in California, Hawaii, Nevada, Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico, South Dakota and Wyoming are recalling certain fresh vegetable trays and cups. The items have sell-by dates through Oct. 24 and are packaged in clear plastic trays and cups of various sizes.
uSeattle- based Triple B, a food supplier, is recalling salad kits and stir-fry mixes, sold in store delis and used in hospitals, schools and hotels in Oregon and Washington.
uTriple B is recalling broccoli florets, stir fry kits, veggie trays with cauliflower and veggie pack combos that were sold in store delis in Alaska.
“As an owner of this company and a mom, providing safe and healthy foods to our consumers and their families is always our top priority,” Nucci said in a written statement Thursday. “This voluntary recall is a reflection of our commitment to ensuring the safety of our consumers.”