United States: A listeria outbreak originating from frozen supplemental milkshakes sold to healthcare facilities affected Connecticut and 20 other states, which caused twelve deaths together with thirty-eight cases nationwide, as reported by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in late February.
More about the news
A Department of Public Health representative confirmed the outbreak affected Connecticut residents, but both patients recovered fully.
According to the DPH spokesperson, “Any individual or facility with Sysco Imperial or Lyons ReadyCare frozen supplement shakes should throw them away or return them to the place of purchase,” sheltonherald.com reported.
“DPH also recommends cleaning your refrigerator, containers, or surfaces that may have touched the recalled products. Listeria can easily survive in the refrigerator and easily spreads to other foods and surfaces,” the statement by officials read.
What have the officials stated?
Prairie Farms Dairy Inc. of Indiana produces 17 contaminated shake products that fall under Lyons ReadyCare and Sysco Imperial Frozen Supplemental Shakes brand names.
The distributor, Lyons Magnus LLC, issued a voluntary recall of the shakes on February 22 following the discovery of the outbreak.
Listeria was discovered in frozen supplemental shakes for the first time in November 2024 among residents of long-term care facilities.
The outbreak began in 2018, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), because investigators at that time were unable to detect the origin of contamination.
The distribution company stated that “the recalled products were distributed primarily to long-term care facilities and were not available for retail sale,” sheltonherald.com reported.
Know about Listeria infection
Although rare, Listeria infections pose increased dangers to newborn infants, pregnant mothers, and adults over 65 years old.
People develop symptoms starting two weeks after exposure to Listeria, and these symptoms may include fever and diarrhea followed by vomiting, neck stiffness, and convulsions.
FDA authorities connected listeria outbreaks involving contaminated shake containers to residents of Alabama, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and West Virginia together with Connecticut.
Furthermore, “People should call their health care provider right away if they experience any of these symptoms after drinking a recalled shake,” the DPH spokesperson stated.