You may want to rethink using packaged salads in your fridge because of their usefulness. Dole Fresh Vegetables has issued a voluntary, precautionary recall for all of its salads processed at two of their facilities because of a possible health risk from the pathogen, according to the FDA.
The recalled items were sold at supermarkets and big-box retailers across the country. What to do if you have purchased any of the salads that have been recalled is included in this information.
The Dole salads are being recalled.
Bagged salad recalls seem to blend together. That is correct in this case. You can read the whole saga in the FDA outbreak advisory, but the CDC and FDA have been investigating the case for years, and there have been 16 illnesses and 12 hospitalizations linked to this strain of Listeria in packaged salads. Health officials believe that other bags of salads could pose the same health risk.
Which salads are included in the recall?
Dole is responsible for processing all the salads that were recalled, but they were also sold in-house at retailers like Kroger, Walmart, and others. Dole is one of the brand names of the salad products. A full list of the products can be found on the FDA website.
The products were processed at Dole's facilities in North Carolina and Arizona. Dole products that are not included in the recall include salad products, fresh fruit, and field-packed fresh vegetables, according to the FDA.
How to identify salad products.
The FDA website has a product lot code on the upper right-hand corner of the package, if you have any of the products listed there in your fridge. It is part of the recall if it begins with the letter "N" or "Y" and has a "best if used by" date between November 30, 2021, and January 8, 2022,
The salad products were sold in Alabama, Arizona, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia. If the product code begins with a W or B, that means they were processed in Springfield and are safe to eat.
If you have a recalled salad, what should you do?
The FDA wants consumers to throw out any remaining products. You should be able to return the recalled products to the place of purchase for a full refund, even if the FDA doesn't mention this in their guidance. Don't eat the salad.
If you have eaten any of the recalled salads, you should contact your health care provider to report your symptoms and get help.
You can report a complaint, illness, or serious allergic reaction to the FDA.
If you have questions about the voluntary recalls, you can call the Dole Consumer Response Center. There is a time and place.
