A company is recalling nearly 10 million pounds of meat and poultry products made at an Oklahoma plant because they may be contaminated with Listeria bacteria, which can cause illness and death.
BrucePac of Woodburn, Ore., recalled about 5,000 tons of ready-to-eat foods this week after U.S. Department of Agriculture officials detected listeria in poultry samples during routine testing. Further testing identified BrucePac chicken as the source. The recall concerns 75 meat and chicken products.
The foods include products like grilled chicken breast strips that were manufactured at the company’s facility in Durant, Oklahoma. They were produced between June 19 and Oct. 8 and shipped to restaurants, food service vendors and other sites across the country, government officials said.
The products have an expiration date ranging from June 19, 2025 to October 8, 2025. Officials said they are concerned the food may still be available for use or stored in refrigerators or freezers. The products must be thrown away, they stressed.
There are no confirmed reports of illness related to the recall.
Eating foods contaminated with listeria can cause potentially serious illness. About 1,600 people are infected with Listeria bacteria each year in the United States and about 260 die from it, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Listeria infections usually cause fever, muscle aches and fatigue and can cause neck stiffness, confusion, loss of balance and seizures. Symptoms may appear quickly or up to 10 weeks after eating contaminated food. Infections are particularly dangerous for older people, those with weakened immune systems, or those who are pregnant.
