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Millions Of Pounds Of Meat Are Being Recalled. Here's What To Look For In Your Fridge

A sampling of some of the hundreds of ready-to-eat products affected by the BrucePac recall, according to the USDA. U.S. Department of Agriculture hide caption

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Public health authorities are urging Americans to check their fridges and freezers after recalling more than 11 million pounds of ready-to-eat meat and poultry items over possible listeria contamination.

The Oregon-based company BrucePac, which sells pre-cooked proteins, is recalling 11,765,285 pounds of meat and poultry that it shipped to grocery stores, restaurants, schools and other institutions nationwide, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS).

The FSIS says it detected listeria during routine testing of finished products containing BrucePac poultry, which a subsequent investigation confirmed as the source.

Sponsor Message Health 9 people have died in connection to the listeria outbreak among Boar's Head products

The bacteria can cause a serious infection that is especially dangerous for people who are pregnant, over 65 or have weakened immune systems. There have been no confirmed reports of adverse reactions linked to the products, it adds.

Authorities first announced the recall last week, but have since expanded it to cover more than one million additional pounds of meat and poultry products. That amounts to hundreds of items from dozens of popular brands, sold at over a dozen grocery chains across the country.

The USDA also confirmed this week that the products have been distributed to schools and says it will post a school distribution list on its website once one is available.

The recalled products include salads, wraps, pasta bowls, burritos, enchiladas and many other ready-made frozen and family meals, and come from brands including Fresh Express, Rao's, Boston Market, Atkins, Dole, ReadyMeals, Taylor Farms, Home Chef and Signature Select.

The stores that carry them include Aldi, Amazon Fresh, Giant Eagle, H-E-B, Kroger, Meijer, Publix, Target, Trader Joe's, Walmart, Wegmans and 7-Eleven.

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The affected goods were produced between May 31 and Oct, 8 and bear the establishment numbers "51205" or "P-51205" either inside or underneath the USDA mark of inspection. But BrucePac cautioned that the number is only on packages it ships directly to customers, not retail packages.

"Because we sell to other companies who resell, repackage, or use our products as ingredients in other foods, we do not have a list of retail products that contain our recalled items," the company said in a statement, adding that the best way for people to identify contaminated products is through the USDA website or by calling the company or retailer from which they got the package.

The USDA is maintaining a list of recalled products — which is 345 pages long as of Wednesday — and urging people to use the search function to look up individual products, stores and brands and throw away any that they may have at home.

Authorities say they are also "concerned that some product may be available for use in restaurants, institutions, schools and other establishments" and are urging them to throw the goods out immediately.

For its part, BrucePac says it is working closely with the USDA to notify consumers, contact the food companies and distributors affected and ensure "all necessary actions are taken to ensure a safe food supply."

"We will not resume production until we are confident the issue has been resolved," it added.

What to do if you're worried

The USDA is urging people to toss any affected products and monitor its website for more information as it becomes available.

It says consumers with food safety questions can call the toll-free USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline at 888-674-6854 or email MPHotline@usda.Gov, and can report complaints about any meat, poultry or egg products online.

Anyone concerned about illness should contact their healthcare provider, the department adds.

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Eating food contaminated with listeria can cause listeriosis, an invasive infection that spreads beyond the gastrointestinal tract and must be treated with antibiotics.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says listeria infection is the third leading cause of death from foodborne illnesses in the U.S., estimating that 1,600 people are infected and 260 people die from it each year.

The infection can be fatal in older adults and people with weakened immune systems, and can cause miscarriages, stillbirths, premature delivery in pregnant women as well as life-threatening infections in their newborns.

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Symptoms of listeriosis include fever, chills, muscle aches, nausea, diarrhea, stiff neck, loss of balance and convulsions. Symptoms could begin within a few days of eating contaminated food in some cases, but in others could take 30 days or more to show up, according to the Mayo Clinic.

The USDA says anyone in the higher-risk categories who experiences flu-like symptoms within two months after eating contaminated food should seek medical care and tell their health care provider about the food.

Listeria concerns have been responsible for other recalls in recent months, including an outbreak linked to Boar's Head deli meat that resulted in 59 hospitalizations and 10 deaths across 19 states this summer. The USDA has since opened an internal investigation into its handling of prior reports of safety violations at Boar's Head's Virginia plant.

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NPR's Chandelis Duster contributed reporting.

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Is It Safe To Eat Deli Meat During Pregnancy? What Experts Need You To Know.

Deli meat is a lunchtime classic, but during pregnancy, you might wonder if this staple sandwich ingredient is one you'd rather avoid.

The deadly listeria outbreak linked to Boar's Head products manufactured in a plant in Jarratt, Virginia, has ignited concerns over the safety risks of eating sliced deli meat. Since late July, 59 hospitalizations and 10 deaths have been reported in connection with the outbreak, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Prevention and Control.

There are risks involved with consuming unheated deli meat during pregnancy, per the CDC.

Is it ever safe to eat deli meat during pregnancy? Here's what the experts have to say.

Is it safe to eat deli meat during pregnancy?

One of the most serious risks of eating unheated deli meat during pregnancy is the possibility of developing listeriosis, an infection caused by the bacterium listeria monocytogenes, says Dr. Carolyn Cokes, MD, MPH, a board certified OB/GYN with the Metropolitan OB/GYN group.

Listeriosis is typically transmitted as a foodborne illness, although fetal and neonatal infections of listeriosis are typically passed during pregnancy, per the CDC.

During pregnancy, the body's immune system is naturally suppressed as "a mechanism for the body to prevent the body from rejecting the fetus," says Liz Weinandy, MPH, RDN, LD, a registered dietitian nutritionist at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. Consequently, pregnant people are more vulnerable to developing infections such as listeriosis.

According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, pregnant people are 10 times more likely to develop listeriosis in comparison to the general population.

With that being said, the odds of developing pregnancy-associated listeriosis are still exceptionally low, Cokes says. According to a 2012 study that measured incidences of listeriosis, pregnancy-associated listeriosis was recorded in 2.27 per 100 thousand of non-Hispanic patients, and 8.9 per 100 thousand in Hispanic patients.

Can you eat deli meat during pregnancy?

Deli meat and cold cuts are deemed safe for pregnant people to eat once the meat has been heated to an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit, or until the meat is steaming hot, per the CDC.

People "who are pregnant should definitely take the steps to make sure that they're being safe [if] they eat these meats," says Weinandy.

Weinandy recommends heating the meat up in the oven, microwave or boiling water. "It should be steaming, because the bacteria is easily killed with heat," she says.

What are the first signs of listeriosis?

Listeriosis in pregnant people may present similar overlapping symptoms to other flu-like illnesses, Cokes says. Common symptoms linked to listeriosis in pregnant people include fever, muscle aches and tiredness, according to the CDC.

Reach out to your doctor at the onset of symptoms, Cokes emphasizes. In the event that an infection is listeriosis, "there are things we can do to improve outcomes," Cokes says.

More: Can you actually get pregnant during your period? What an OB/GYN needs you to know.

Listeriosis during pregnancy may result in severe health complications, such as miscarriage, preterm labor or stillbirth. To a newborn, listeriosis may lead to serious illness or death, per ACOG.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Can pregnant women eat deli meat? Risks and complications

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