Makers of ready-to-eat meals need to be more vigilant in cleaning equipment and training employees to reduce the threat of contamination by Listeria monocytogenes, a common bacterium that can lead to death, experts told The Food Institute.
The latest outbreak sickened at least 27 people, killing six and causing one pregnancy loss, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in its latest update.
Those affected ate pasta dishes sold by Albertsons, Kroger, Sprouts Farmers Market, Trader Joe’s and other major retailers in 18 states.
“Contaminations like this usually happen during the production or packaging stage and commonly with ready-to-eat foods that aren’t cooked before eating,” Dr. Raj Dasgupta, chief medical adviser for Sleepopolis, told FI. “Listeria is particularly tough because it can survive and even grow in cold environments, so once it gets into a facility it’s hard to remove completely.
“While food safety rules are strict, all it takes is a small lapse in cleaning or temperature control for an outbreak to occur.”
According to the CDC, there were three major outbreaks this year, two of which are ongoing: the ready-to-eat chicken fettuccine alfredo meals made by FreshRealm and one involving frozen supplemental shakes by Lyons ReadyCare and Sysco Imperial, the latter of which began in 2018 and has caused 11 deaths in 21 states.
The third outbreak was declared over in May and involved supplement shakes produced by Prairie Farms. In February, thousands of pounds of baked goods were recalled because of suspected contamination.
“Pathogens are difficult to disinfect in areas that are hard to clean, such as drains, equipment, and other food contact surfaces,” said Matt Allen, senior director of food advisory at NSF. “Additionally, inadequate temperature control during storage and poor environmental monitoring can lead to pathogens multiplying and making their way into finished products.”
The contaminated pasta was traced back to Nate’s Fine Foods of Roseville, California, through genetic sequencing. The company recalled 245,000 pounds of its products, which had been sold to companies that produce ready-to-eat meals, in September, several months after FreshRealm recalled its chicken fettucine alfredo meals.
Eating foods contaminated by Listeria monocygenes does not necessarily cause severe illness. The CDC estimated 1,250 people are infected annually in the U.S., leading to 172 deaths, making the contaminant the third deadliest among food-borne pathogens.
Last year’s Boar’s Head Listeria outbreak killed 10 people and led to the permanent closure of the company’s plant in Jarratt, Virginia. Lawsuits resulted in millions of dollars in damages.
Though it may seem like Listeria contamination is becoming more prevalent, NSF’s Allen said it’s more likely that detection and reporting have improved.
“This increased detection, reporting and response can create the perception that such outbreaks are more common, but the truth is that they have been with us for decades and will persist until best practices are broadly applied throughout the food manufacturing and processing industry,” Allen said.
However, Los Angeles attorney Vineet Dubey said there’s another factor.
“The efficiency of today’s supply chains can amplify the risk across brands. We saw this years ago with E. coli in bagged spinach in 2006, two years ago with lead in a supplier’s cinnamon, and in one of the largest food recalls in the U.S. in 2009 when a peanut-paste supplier’s product contained salmonella,” Dubey said.
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