Possible Listeria Contamination Prompts Whole Foods Market Cheese Recall

Posted on Nov 27, 2010 in Listeria

Whole Foods Market announced that supplier, Bravo Farms of Traver, California, has issued a voluntary recall. The recall is due to evidence of Listeria and E. coli contamination at their plant.

Whole Foods Market stores in Arizona, California, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington sold the following Bravo Farms cheese products that are part of this recall:

Sage Cheddar

Silver Mountain Cheddar

Chipotle Cheddar

Premium Block Cheddar

Premium White Chunk Cheddar

Chipotle Chunk Cheddar

White Black Wax Cheddar

Last week Bravo Farms, an artisan cheesemaker specializing in raw milk cheese, pulled all of its shipments after California officials found listeria at its plant in Traver, California. The new listeria contamination findings come just about six week after a multi-state outbreak of E. coli 0157:H7 associated with the Bravo Farms Dutch-style gouda cheese.

Since mid-October, 38 people in Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada and New Mexico have been sickened in the E. coli outbreak linked to the gouda. The outbreak includes 15 hospitalizations and one case of kidney failure. Pritzker Olsen is representing 7 victims of this E. coli outbreak.

Listeria: What is it?

Listeriosis is the infection caused by consuming food contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. The disease affects primarily persons of advanced age, pregnant women, newborns and adults with weakened immune systems. However, persons without these risk factors can also rarely be affected.

Listeriosis Symptoms and Complications

Symptoms of listeriosis include fever, muscle aches, and sometimes nausea or diarrhea. If infection spreads to the nervous system the symptoms may include headache and stiff neck. Infected pregnant women may experience only a mild, flu like illness. A listeriosis infection during pregnancy can lead to more serious problems for the fetus.

Complications of listeriosis include the following:

Listeria Meningitis

Listeria Septicemia

Pneumonia

Hydrocephalus

Encephalitis

Seizures

Brain Stem Damage

Blindness

Cranial Nerve Palsies

Cervical Cord Compression

Miscarriage

Stillbirth

Listeriosis Attorney

Attorney Fred Pritzker recently settled a listeriosis lawsuit for $6,425,000. He represents Listeria victims throughout the nation and has been interviewed and quoted by The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Lawyers USA and others. He is a sought-after speaker on food safety and food litigation issues. To contact attorney Fred Pritzker, call 1-888-377-8900 (toll free) or submit our online form for a free consultation.

Keywords: listeria, listeriosis lawsuit, lawyer, attorney, listeriosis meningitis, Whole Foods Market cheese, Bravo Farms, listeria contamination

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