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Oct 22, 2024

BrucePac meat recall includes these foods from Trader Joe's, Kroger and more. Here's a list. - CBS News

By Aimee Picchi Edited By Anne Marie Lee Updated on: October 21, 2024 / 2:58 PM EDT / CBS News Hundreds of products sold at grocery chains such as Kroger, Wegmans and Trader Joe's, as well as schools,

By Aimee Picchi

Edited By Anne Marie Lee

Updated on: October 21, 2024 / 2:58 PM EDT / CBS News

Hundreds of products sold at grocery chains such as Kroger, Wegmans and Trader Joe's, as well as schools, are part of a BrucePac meat recall involving almost 12 million pounds of meat and poultry that may be contaminated with listeria bacteria, which can cause illness and death.

The products were disclosed Thursday by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in a 326-page list. Recalled products range from a Kroger Mexican-style street corn salad to a Wegmans salad bowl with chicken and uncured bacon. Other brands whose products are part of the recall include Taylor Farms, Boston Market, 7-Eleven, Aldi's and Rao's (see list below).

The recall, first announced October 9, was sparked by USDA officials detecting listeria in samples of ready-to-eat poultry products during routine testing. While the recall initially included 75 meat and chicken products, the expanded list covers hundreds of prepared meal products, from salads to pasta dinners, made with recalled meat from BrucePac's Oklahoma plant.

The recalled products have the establishment numbers "51205 or P-51205" inside or under the USDA mark of inspection.

But the USDA is urging consumers to check the list of products involved in the recall because they may have a different establishment on the label due to processing by other companies.

"Consumers are urged to carefully review the information, including the product and label information" involved in the recall, the agency said.

The products were produced from June 19, 2024 to Oct. 8, 2024. Because some consumers may still have the products in their fridge or freezer, they should check and throw away any of the recalled products, officials stressed.

On October 19, the Food and Drug Administration noted that grocery chain Albertsons had recalled 12 prepared foods because they contained meat that was part of the BrucePac recall. Sold under the ReadyMeals brand as well as store-made deli items, the foods were sold at Albertsons stores, as well as Carrs-Safeway, Eagle, Jewel-Osco, Pavilions, Randalls, Safeway, Shaw's, Star Market, Tom Thumb and Vons.

More than 170 schools were also involved in the recall as BrucePac meat was shipped to their facilities. These schools are located across multiple states, from Florida to Pennsylvania; see here for a full list of the affected schools.

Listeria infections typically cause fever, muscle aches and tiredness and may cause stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance and convulsions. Symptoms can occur quickly or up to 10 weeks after eating contaminated food. The infections are especially dangerous for older people, those with weakened immune systems or who are pregnant.

ReadyMeals street taco meal chicken asada

Aimee Picchi is the associate managing editor for CBS MoneyWatch, where she covers business and personal finance. She previously worked at Bloomberg News and has written for national news outlets including USA Today and Consumer Reports.

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