Almark Foods is expanding its voluntary recall, first announced on Dec. 20, to include all hard-boiled eggs manufactured at the firm’s Gainesville, Ga., facility, including all retail, pillow pack, pouch pack, frozen diced and protein kit products, due to potential contamination with Listeria monocytogenes, the company announced in a press release. The products were distributed nationwide.
Listeria monocytogenes is an organism that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people and others with weakened immune systems. Although healthy individuals may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea, a Listeria monocytogenes infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women.
On Dec. 18, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration notified Almark Foods that the company’s Hard-Boiled and Peeled eggs in pails manufactured at the Gainesville facility may be associated with a Listeria monocytogenes outbreak that has been linked to several reported illnesses and one reported death. A more recent FDA sample from the facility also matched the outbreak strain, suggesting the possibility that the strain may have remained present in the facility.
Out of an abundance of caution, Almark is voluntarily expanding its recall to include all product packaged for the retail market manufactured at its Gainesville plant that remains within shelf life. This includes products with “Best If Used By” dates up through March 2, 2020. Almark has also temporarily suspended all production at its Gainesville plant.
The affected product can be identified by viewing the printed “Best If Used By” date coding on the product package. If the “Best If Used By” code starts with the prefix “G,” the product was manufactured at the company’s Gainesville, Ga., facility and is subject to this recall. Products with the prefix “N” or “Y” are not subject to this recall. For Protein Kit products, consumers are advised to check the code on the actual egg package within the kit.
Customers who have purchased these products are urged to immediately discard and not consume the products. Customers with questions may contact Almark Foods’ Customer Helpline at (877) 546-0454 Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. EST.
This voluntary recall is being made in cooperation with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
