The massive recall of meats processed by BrucePac has been expanded by another 1.7 million pounds of products. The food was distributed to schools.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service said a list of schools that received the products was unavailable. When it is, the list will be published on the FSIS recalls website.
The recall now involves more than 11.7 million pounds of meat, chicken and turkey products, including hundreds of items sold at popular stores such as Walmart, Aldi and Costco.
[ Recall alert: Food sold at Walmart, Aldi, Trader Joe’s part of BrucePac recall ]
The recall was announced last week after it was found that the ready-to-eat meat products distributed by BrucePac were potentially contaminated with Listeria, which was found during routine product testing, the USDA said.
Initially, the recall involved about 9.9 million pounds of food.
There were no confirmed illnesses linked to the recalled items.
Consuming food contaminated with Listeria can cause listeriosis, an infection that affects older adults, people with weak immune systems, pregnant women and newborns, the USDA said.
Symptoms of listeriosis include:
- Fever
- Muscle aches
- Headache
- Stiff neck
- Confusion
- Loss of balance
- Convulsions
The above symptoms could come after diarrhea or other gastrointestinal issues.
For pregnant women, Listeria could cause miscarriages, stillbirths, premature delivery or infection of the newborn.
Listeriosis is treated with antibiotics.
Anyone with questions about the recall can call BrucePac at 503-874-3000, the USDA said.