Check your refrigerator for fully cooked ham and pepperoni products from Alexander & Hornung. The Michigan-based company is recalling the products because of possible exposure to Listeria monocytogenes.
The recall was announced Sunday by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS).
Alexander & Hornung, which is also a unit of Perdue Premium Meat Co., Inc., said it has voluntarily recalled 234,391 pounds of 17 processed meat products.
So far no illnesses have been reported. In a statement on its website, alexanderhornung.com, the company said “there is no conclusive evidence that the products were contaminated at the time of shipment, the voluntary recall is being initiated out of an abundance of caution.”
Recalled products include fully cooked products and private label products made for its retail customers including Alexander & Hornung spiral sliced ham and Niman Ranch Applewood smoked uncured ham. You will find a full list of products here.
The products involved in the recall have the establishment number “EST. M10125” inside the USDA mark of inspection. The items being recalled range in size and have several different sell or best used by dates.
The concern, according to FSIS, is that consumers will have the products in their refrigerators or freezers. Consumers who have these products should not consume them. The products should be thrown away or returned to the store where purchased.
Consuming food contaminated with listeria bacteria, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, can cause serious or fatal infections in children, elderly people, those with compromised immune systems, pregnant women, and newborns.
The CDC says that about 1,600 people get listeriosis in the U.S. every year.
Consumers can call the Alexander & Hornung hotline: 866-866-3703 from 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday.-Friday for more information.
Symptoms of listeria infection
The CDC says symptoms of listeria infection can be different depending on the person and part of the body affected.
Healthy individuals may experience high fever, severe headaches, nausea, abdominal pain, and diarrhea.
Symptoms usually start one to four weeks after eating food contaminated with listeria. But they can also start as late as 70 days after exposure, the CDC says.
Pregnant women
Typically, pregnant women experience only fever and other flu-like symptoms, such as fatigue and muscle aches. However, infections during pregnancy can lead to miscarriage, stillbirth, premature delivery, or life-threatening infection of the newborn.
Higher-risk other than pregnant women
Symptoms can include headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, and convulsions in addition to fever and muscle aches.
Source: cdc.gov.
