Fresh Express Recalls Packages of Salad Due to Listeria

 Fresh Express is recalling 10oz  and 6 oz packages of Italian Salad due to the potential to be contaminated with Listeria.  The product in question is already past its stated expiration date. 

There was no information on how the issue was discovered. 

FDA Recall Notice
http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm391048.htm
Fresh Express Issues Recall of Limited Quantity of Already Expired Italian Salad Due to Possible Health Risk, No Illnesses Cited

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - March 28, 2014 - Salinas, California – Fresh Express Incorporated has issued a recall of a limited number of cases of 10 oz. and 6oz. Italian Salad with the already expired Use-by Date of March 26 and a Product Code of H071A11A due to a possible health risk from Listeria monocytogenes. No illnesses have been reported in association with the recall and no other Fresh Express products are being recalled.

The company is confirming with retailers that the expired product has already been removed from store shelves and inventories in accordance with its strict procedures for products that have reached their expiration date.

Only Fresh Express Italian Salad with the specific Product Code of H071A11A and March 26 Use-by Date is included in the recall. Consumers who have the recalled product should not eat it but rather discard it. Consumers with questions may call Fresh Express at (800) 242-5472 during the hours of 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. EDT.

Listeria monocytogenes is an organism that can cause foodborne illness in a person who eats a food item contaminated with it. Symptoms of infection may include fever, muscle aches, gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea or diarrhea. The illness primarily impacts pregnant women and adults with weakened immune systems. Most healthy adults and children rarely become seriously ill.

Although the product was already expired and no illnesses were reported, the company elected to issue a recall as a precaution when it learned a single sample in a random test had yielded a positive result for Listeria monocytogenes. Fresh Express is coordinating closely with regulatory officials.

The recalled salad was distributed in limited quantities to predominantly Eastern and Mid-Atlantic states.

Fresh Express Italian Salad being recalled displays a Use-by Date of March 26, 2014 with a Product Code of H071A11A in the upper right-hand side of the package.

BRAND	PRODUCT NAME	SIZE	UPC	Production Code	Best If Used By Date	POSSIBLE DISTRIBUTION STATES
Fresh Express	Italian	10 oz.	0 71279-21100 8	H071A11A	26-Mar	CT, DE, MA, MD, ME, NC, NH, NY, NJ, OH, PA, RI, VA, VT, WV, DC

 

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The Packer
 http://www.thepacker.com/fruit-vegetable-news/Listeria-test-spurs-Fresh-Express-to-recall-salad-253208491.html#sthash.CtaTZ0k4.dpuf
Listeria test spurs Fresh Express to recall salad
03/31/2014 09:56:00 AM.
Coral Beach                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      
An unknown quantity of Fresh Express Italian Salad bagged salads are under recall in an unknown number of states because of possible listeria contamination. No illnesses have been reported.

Two days after the use-by date, Fresh Express recalled an unknown number of cases of its packaged “Italian Salad” on March 28 because a sample returned a positive result for listeria monocytogenes contamination. Officials at Chiquita International Brands Inc., Charlotte, N.C., did not immediately respond to calls for comment March 31. No illnesses have been reported in connection to the ready-to-eat Fresh Express salads, according to a recall notice on the Food and Drug Administration website. “The recalled salad was distributed in limited quantities to predominantly Eastern and Mid-Atlantic states” and Washington D.C., according to the recall notice for Fresh Express, Salinas, Calif.

According to the release, other “possible distribution states” could include Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, North Carolina, New Hampshire, New York, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia, Vermont and West Virginia. The Italian Salad is in 6- and 10-ounce bags with the product code H071A11A and the use-by date of March 26. “The company is confirming with retailers that the expired product has already been removed from store shelves and inventories in accordance with its strict procedures for products that have reached their expiration date,” according to the recall notice. -