If You Bought This at Kroger, Throw It Away Immediately, FDA Warns
The company has issued a voluntary recall for one food item.
As the leading supermarket chain in the U.S., Kroger is many of our go-to stop for groceries. But while it's generally very reliable, it's no stranger to the occasional recall. In June, customers had to throw out pre-made pasta dishes they had bought at Kroger due to undeclared allergens, and then in August, cooked shrimp from the grocery store was recalled for potential salmonella contamination. Now, the chain has had to recall another food item for bacteria concerns. Read on to find out if you need to throw out one of your most recent Kroger purchases.
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Kroger has issued a recall on one bagged kale.
On Sept. 16, The Kroger Co. announced that it was voluntarily recalling its 16-ounce name-brand bagged kale, produced by Baker Farms. According to an announcement published by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the produce was recalled due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination. The affected bags have a universal product code (UPC) of 11110-18170 and a best by date of Sept. 18, 2021, "which is printed on the front of the package below the light blue bar," according to the FDA notice.
Listeria infection can result in severe health consequences.
The FDA says it has not received any reports of illness related to the Kroger brand kale, but there are severe health consequences that can result from consuming products infected with this bacteria. According to the agency, Listeria monocyotgenes is an organism that can "cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail, or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems." But even healthy people may be infected by listeria, experiencing short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea. "Listeria infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women" as well, the FDA warns.
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Baker Farms also recalled two other bagged kale products.
The Kroger-branded kale is just one of three recent recalls from Baker Farms. On Sept. 17, the FDA reported that the company was also recalling its Baker Farms and SEG Grocers brand names of one pound, plastic bagged kale due to listeria contamination. According to the agency, Baker Farms was notified by a customer that their product had tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes on Sept. 15.
The FDA asks that customers either throw away or return any affected products.
Customers who have bought any of the affected products are "urged not to consume the product but to return them to the place of purchase for a full refund" or discard the product, the FDA says. The recalled Kroger product was distributed by stores in the "Columbus, Nashville and Atlanta Divisions, servicing Columbus and Toledo, Ohio; Knoxville, Tennessee; eastern West Virginia; and the states of Georgia, Alabama and South Carolina," but the grocer says it pulled all potentially contaminated products from produce departments on Sept. 16. Baker Farms says the other affected products were distributed to stores between Aug. 3o and Sept. 1, primarily having been sold in states such as Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, New York, and Virginia.
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