By JONEL ALECCIA
Federal health officials are warning consumers not to eat certain heat-and-eat pasta meals sold at Walmart and Trader Joe’s because they may be contaminated with listeria bacteria linked to a deadly outbreak.
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The U.S. Agriculture Department updated a public health alert Friday that now includes these products:
• Trader Joe’s Cajun Style Blackened Chicken Breast Fettucine Alfredo sold in 16-ounce plastic trays. The products have best-by dates of Sept. 20, Sept. 24 and Sept. 27. The affected meals have the number P- 45288 inside the USDA inspection mark.
• Marketside Linguine with Beef Meatballs & Marinara Sauce sold at Walmart in refrigerated 12-ounce clear plastic trays. Those products have best-by dates of Sept. 22 through Oct. 1. The affected meals contain the establishment numbers “EST. 50784” and “EST. 47718” inside the USDA mark of inspection on the label. They were sent to Walmart stores nationwide.
Additional products may be identified, according to USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service.
No recall has been issued, but FreshRealm, a large food producer that distributed the products, said it advised Walmart this week to pull the meals from store shelves. Walmart officials said they put a stop on sales and removed the products from stores.
The meals may be contaminated with the same strain of listeria that caused an outbreak tied to chicken fettuccine Alfredo sold at Walmart and Kroger stores. Four people have been killed killed and at least 20 sickened as of Sept. 26.
FreshRealm conducted tests that detected the listeria in linguine used in the meatball dish, company officials said. The strain matched the listeria identified in the chicken fettuccine Alfredo, the company said.
“We have long maintained that the source of the listeria was likely an ingredient supplied by a third party,” the company said in a statement.
The pasta came from Nate’s Fine Foods of Roseville, California. The company did not immediately respond to questions.
Listeria infections can cause serious illness, particularly in older adults, people with weakened immune systems and those who are pregnant or their newborns. Symptoms include fever, muscle aches, headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance and convulsions.
About 1,600 people get sick each year from listeria infections and about 260 die, the CDC says. Federal officials in December said they were revamping protocols to prevent listeria infections after several high-profile outbreaks, including one linked to Boar’s Head deli meats that led to 10 deaths and more than 60 illnesses last year.
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