Health Warning! Recall On Salads Sold Locally At Supermarkets In Massachusetts

A word of caution: There are currently some packaged salads that are on recall due to listeria concerns. And several were sold at popular grocery stores here in Massachusetts.

The Food and Drug Administration reports Dole Fresh Vegetables, Inc. has announced a voluntary recall of certain packaged salads due to possible health risks from Listeria monocytogenes.

According to the media alert on the FDA's website, Dole is recalling:

a limited number of Dole-branded and private label salad kits...which were processed on the same line as a cheese that has been recalled by the manufacturer, Rizo-Lopez Foods, for the possible presence of Listeria monocytogenes.

The products are being recalled due to the possibility of cross-contamination of cheese contained in certain salad kits by cheese potentially contaminated with listeria from their packaged cheese supplier.

Listeria is the bacteria that causes the listeriosis infection, which can cause fever and diarrhea, according to the CDC. The FDA's alert also passed this info along:

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.

Infection can also lead to miscarriages among pregnant women. The products subject to this recall include several Dole packaged salads plus President's Choice and Marketside brands. For the full, detailed list, visit the FDA's website here.

According to the FDA, Dole retailers have been advised to check store shelves and warehouse inventories to confirm that no recalled product is available for purchase by consumers.

People are urged to not consume these products. Check your refrigerator and if you have any of the products subject to recall, please discard them immediately. As Mom would always say, "Better to be safe than sorry."