Dole Fresh Vegetables Inc. withdraws certain packaged salads due to health risk
Dole Fresh Vegetables Inc. is voluntarily withdrawing all Dole-branded and private label packaged salads processed at its Springfield, Ohio, production facility because of concerns over listeria monocytogenes, according to a Department of Defense All Food and Drug Activity message sent Jan. 22.
The Defense Commissary Agency has publicized this recall to all its stores, said Richard Stith, a public health advisor for DeCA headquarters at Fort Lee, Virginia. Whenever a commissary has a recalled or withdrawn product in its inventory, it is immediately removed from store shelves.
"We do carry this product – stateside only," Stith said. "We've removed the affected products from DeCA's inventory. It is not available to any of our patrons."
Products subject to the voluntary withdrawal are identified with a product code beginning with the letter "A" in the upper right-hand corner of the package and were sold in the following states listed below:
- Alabama
- Connecticut
- Florida
- Georgia
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Michigan
- Massachusetts
- Maryland
- Minnesota
- Missouri
- Mississippi
- North Carolina
- New Jersey
- New York
- Ohio
- Pennsylvania
- South Carolina
- Tennessee
- Virginia
This suspension and withdrawal is being performed voluntarily by Dole out of an abundance of caution, in collaboration with the Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control.
Twelve people infected with the outbreak strain of listeria have been reported from six states since July 5, 2015. Twelve people have been hospitalized, and one person from Michigan died as a result of listeriosis.
Listeria monocytogenes may cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, the frail or elderly, and those with weakened immune systems. Healthy adults may only suffer short term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea. Listeria infections may also cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women.
ALFOODACT messages originate from the Defense Logistics Agency's food safety office.