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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Tuesday February 20, 2007 |
CONTACT Lori Maldonado |
State Health Officials Urge Coloradans to Check Their Refrigerators and Freezers for Oscar Mayer/Louis Rich Chicken Breast StripsState Health Officials Urge Coloradans to Check Their Refrigerators and Freezers for Oscar Mayer/Louis Rich Chicken Breast Strips DENVER—The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment today urged individuals who may have purchased “Oscar Mayer/Louis Rich Chicken Breast Strips with Rib Meat, Grilled, Fully Cooked – Ready To Eat” at retail locations in Colorado to check their packages for specific code information as these chicken strips may be contaminated by Listeria monocytogenes. Individuals who have the recalled product should not eat it and discard it. The chicken breast strips affected by the recall come in six-ounce packages, and on the back of each package appears a “use by” date of “19 Apr 2007.” The code “19 APR 2007” appears on each case. Also, the front of each package bears the establishment number “P-19676” inside the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) mark of inspection. The product was manufactured by Carolina Culinary Foods, a West Columbia, S.C. firm, and distributed to retail establishments nationwide. Food safety specialists with the Department of Public Health and Environment’s Consumer Protection Division have learned that the recalled product was likely provided to major grocery store chains in Colorado. Information regarding specific grocery store locations is not yet available, but Susan Parachini, wholesale food program manager and recall coordinator with the division, said, “It is extremely important that any consumer who purchased the chicken strips check the packages for the USDA establishment number and ‘use by’ dates due to the serious nature of listeriosis.” Consumption of food contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes can cause listeriosis, an uncommon but potentially fatal disease. Healthy people rarely contract listeriosis. However, listeriosis can cause high fever, severe headache, neck stiffness and nausea. Listeriosis also can cause miscarriages and stillbirths, as well as serious and sometimes fatal infections in those with weakened immune systems, such as infants, the elderly and persons with HIV infection or undergoing chemotherapy. To date, there have not been any confirmed cases in Colorado. For more information, members of the public may call the Consumer Protection Division at 303-692-3620. ---30--- |
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