The wave of sweeping food recalls has come to Costco, with the wholesale giant pulling five more foods containing chicken from its shelves due to listeria fears.
Five products – popular frozen snacks and quick pasta meals – have been recalled, with Costco urging anyone who bought the items from September to October this year to throw them away or return them to where you purchased the products.
The superstore’s move is part of a mounting issue with contamination at an Oklahoma facility that makes BrucePac ready-to-eat chicken and meat products.
BrucePac has recalled 12 million pounds of meat distributed to stores, restaurants, and schools nationwide.
Costco has so far pulled about 200 products from its shelves out of concerns of listeria contamination linked to a single meat and poultry manufacturer
Food inspection agency USDA has not confirmed any illnesses tied to the tainted chicken.
But officials said they worry about listeriosis cases cropping up soon given the chicken manufacturer’s wide reach, having distributed its products to major retailers like Aldi, Trader Joe’s, and Walmart, as well as hundreds of schools, across more than a dozen states.
The latest products pulled from Costco shelves include the Readywise 110-Serving Emergency Protein Bucket, Red’s Southwestern Grill Chicken Mini Burritos, El Monterey Mexican Grill Chicken & Cheese Taquitos, Rana Chicken Truffle Carbonara, and Tagliatelle Grilled White Chicken & Portabello Mushroom Sauce.
The wholesale giant’s latest move to halt sales of those items is part of a broader recall that covers 200 products, amounting to 11,765,285 pounds of foods containing chicken.
Listeria contamination was discovered at an Oklahoma facility that makes BrucePac ready-to-eat chicken and meat products.
The USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service said: ‘The problem was discovered after FSIS performed routine product testing of finished product containing RTE poultry products produced by BrucePac and confirmed those products positive for Listeria monocytogenes.
‘Subsequent FSIS investigation identified BrucePac RTE chicken as the source of the Listeria monocytogenes.’
The recalled products were produced from May 31, 2024, to October 8, 2024. Some of them may have sell-by dates far into the future, which could be confusing for consumers who may realize their seemingly shelf-stable product could be dangerous.
Readywise decided to stop selling its product to stores like Costco, which has already pulled it from shelves, out of an abundance of caution
The Readywise 110 Serving Emergency Protein Bucket sold at Costco has a shelf life of 25 years and is meant to be used in survival situations. It has not been shown to be contaminated with listeria, but it was recalled ‘out of an abundance of caution.’
The other products from Costco may have ‘best buy’ dates as far into the future as 2026.
The FSIS said it is ‘concerned’ that some of these products sent to Costco and other stores may currently be available for use in restaurants, institutions, schools and other establishments.
‘These other establishments may have used affected meat and poultry in RTE products that may be on store shelves or in consumers’ refrigerators or freezers. Restaurants, institutions, schools and other establishments are urged not to serve or use these products. These products should be thrown away or returned to the place of purchase.’
Easy meals made by Rana have been included in the recall, though it is not clear whether those products actually have been contaminated
In addition to affecting BrucePac’s chicken products, the recall has extended to its beef as well.
Dakota Tom’s Sandwiches in South Dakota recalled its burger patties distributed in stores and truck stops in the Mount Rushmore State, North Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa, and Wyoming.
Listeria infection causes listeriosis. Most people who get listeriosis do not get severely ill.
But approximately 1,600 people in the US develop serious listeria infections, known as listeriosis, every year — and about 260 of those infections are fatal.
Pregnant women are 10 times more likely to get listeriosis compared to other adults because of changes in the immune system during pregnancy, which makes it easier for infections to take hold and harder for the body to fight them off.
If it spreads to the nervous system, listeria can also lead to severe brain inflammation, blood poisoning, convulsions, and brain swelling. Early antibiotic diagnosis and treatment is crucial to avoiding the worst possible outcome.
In addition to causing flu-like symptoms, listeriosis can cause nausea, diarrhea, and stomach cramps. In severe cases, it can lead to life-altering seizures and paralysis.
This was the case for Michael Silberman, 86 from Florida, contracted listeria earlier this year which led to brain swelling, causing seizures so severe doctors had to sedate him for weeks.
He is now only able to move around the house with a walker, and can’t drive, grocery shop, shower or take care of his wife Barbara, who suffers from arthritis.
He claims he caught the bug after eating a sandwich containing sliced turkey made by Boar’s Head that was part of a major recall linked to listeria.
