Production at Ballymaguire Foods resumes following listeria detection last month
The
Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI)
launched an investigation following what it described as an 'extensive' outbreak of listeriosis.
Listeriosis is an infection caused by the bacterium listeria monocytogenes. It is usually acquired by eating contaminated food. Listeria is killed by cooking food thoroughly.
The FSAI confirmed one person had died with the rare bacterial infection.
READ MORE
Production at Ballymaguire Foods was voluntarily suspended by the company, while 141 products were recalled from the shelves of
Aldi
,
Tesco
,
SuperValu
and
Centra
, among others.
Ballymaguire supplies chilled ready meals and soups to supermarkets from its base in Lusk, Co Dublin.
The affected meals included chicken curries, lasagnes, bolognaises, pasta bakes, cottage pies and chow meins. Affected side dishes included ready-made mashed potatoes, carrots and peas, green cabbage and pilau rice.
[
Adult dies with listeriosis as food safety authority confirms 'extensive' outbreak
Opens in new window
]
In a statement on Friday, Ballymaguire Foods said it had received approval from the
HSE
to recommence production following a 'comprehensive process' undertaken with the FSAI.
It said production would resume from Friday, with products returning to retail shelves from Tuesday.
'Official approval to resume production follows the completion of a thorough review into the recent detection of Listeria at one of our production sites,' the company said.
Ballymaguire, which was founded in 2008 by brothers Michael and Gabriel Hoey, appointed public health expert and former chief executive of the FSAI Patrick Wall to lead its response to the incident.
Mr Wall said the company 'implemented protocols that go beyond best practice, fully align with regulatory standards and set a benchmark that exceeds industry norms'.
[
Ballymaguire Foods' reputation takes a hit over Listeriosis outbreak
Opens in new window
]
'The actions taken are backed by substantial investment and reflect a renewed focus on precision, accountability and continuous improvement throughout the organisation,' said Mr Wall.
'Every measure is grounded in international best practice and scientific evidence, with a focus on maintaining the highest standards of food hygiene and consumer health protection.
'The decision to grant approval for production to resume reflects the authorities' confidence in the steps taken.'
Ballymaguire Foods managing director Edward Spellman said: 'Our team worked closely with public health authorities and independent experts throughout this review, and I want to acknowledge their support, rigour and professionalism.
'Food safety has always been central to who we are. This experience has challenged us to go even further – to enhance our systems, deepen our expertise and apply new industry-leading standards.
'We acknowledge the concern this situation has caused. We are resolute in our commitment to learn from it and to strengthening the trust placed in us by our partners, customers, and consumers.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Daily Mirror
a day ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Aldi, Tesco, Lidl and Dunnes recalls spark urgent warning to shoppers
It's Saturday, which means it's time for the weekly shop. If you're planning to fill up your pantry and fridge, you'll want to stay alert as the FSAI has issued multiple food recalls throughout the past week. The affected products include everyday essentials such as fresh herbs, leafy greens, ready-to-eat pasta meals, and additional items. These products were available in major retailers including Aldi, SuperValu, Lidl, Dunnes Stores, Marks and Spencer, and Tesco. The FSAI has urged shoppers not to consume the affected batches, reports Dublin Live. Furthermore, shops have been instructed to withdraw the affected batches from shelves and post recall notifications at checkout areas. Here is a complete breakdown of all the food recalls from the past week:. O'Hanlon Herbs Potted Coriander Multiple varieties of O'Hanlon Herbs potted Coriander have been withdrawn due to potential presence of Listeria monocytogenes. The impacted products are as follows: Display until date: 03/08/2025, 05/08/2025, 06/08/2025, 07/08/2025, 08/08/2025, 09/08/2025, 10/08/2025. 03/08/2025, 05/08/2025, 06/08/2025, 07/08/2025, 08/08/2025, 09/08/2025, 10/08/2025. A statement on the FSAI website states: "Symptoms of Listeria monocytogenes infection can include mild flu-like symptoms, or gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea. In rare cases, the infection can be more severe, causing serious complications. "Some people are more vulnerable to Listeria monocytogenes infections, including pregnant women, babies, and people with weakened immune systems, including the elderly. The incubation period (time between initial infection and first symptoms appearing) is on average 3 weeks but can range between 3 and 70 days." O'Hanlon Herbs Potted Coriander Tom and Ollie Traditional Hummus A batch of Tom and Ollie Traditional Hummus (150g) is being recalled due to the possible presence of Listeria monocytogenes. The batch code for the affected products is VG189 with the use by date 08/08/2025. Various Branded Spinach And Mixed Leaves Further to last month's alert, more fresh greens sold in supermarkets have been recalled due to the detection of Listeria monocytogenes. The affected items are as follows:. Best Before Dates / Batch Codes: Best before dates: 30/07/2025, 31/07/2025, 01/08/2025;Batch code: 206. Best before dates: 02/08/2025, 03/08//2025, 09/08/2025, 10/08/2025;Batch codes: 205, 212. Best before dates: 26/07/2025, 27/07/2025, 29/07/2025, 31/07/2025, 01/08/2025, 02/08/2025, 03/08/2025;Batch codes: 199, 202, 204, 205, 206, 207. Best before dates: 31/07/2025, 03/08/2025;Batch codes: 204, 206. Best before dates: 01/08/2025, 02/08/2025, 03/08/2025, 04/08/2025;Batch codes: 205, 206, 207. Best before dates: 28/07/2025, 29/07/2025, 30/07/2025, 03/08/2025;Batch codes: 199, 203, 205. Various Branded Spinach and Mixed Leaves. Hogan's Farm Turkey Burgers A recall has been issued for a batch of Hogan's Farm Turkey Burgers (400g) due to potential Salmonella contamination. Despite the product being past its use-by date, it is suitable for home freezing and consumers are urged to check their freezers for the affected batch. The products in question bear the approval number IE 827 EC and have a use by date of 26/7/2025. A cautionary note on the FSAI website states: "People infected with Salmonella typically develop symptoms between 12 and 36 hours after infection, but this can range between 6 and 72 hours. The most common symptom is diarrhoea, which can sometimes be bloody. "Other symptoms may include fever, headache and abdominal cramps. The illness usually lasts 4 to 7 days. Diarrhoea can occasionally be severe enough to require hospital admission. The elderly, infants, and those with impaired immune systems are more likely to have a severe illness." Hogan's Farm Turkey Burgers. Aldi's Eat and Go Roast Chicken Basil Pesto Pasta A batch of Eat and Go Roast Chicken Pesto Pasta (284g) With Cheese with the use by date 31/07/2025 is also being recalled due to the presence of Listeria monocytogenes. Food allergen alerts. All batches of Bao Long Hủ tiếu Nam Vang Soup Seasoning contain crustaceans, fish and soya. All batches of Bao Long Bun bo Hue Soup Seasoning and Bao Long Bun Rieu Soup Seasoning contain crustaceans and fish. These allergens are not declared on the label. The affected products include: Crustaceans, fish and soybeans. Crustaceans and fish. Crustaceans and fish. Aldi Eat and Go Roast Chicken Basil Pesto Pasta. Terranova Fermented Ashwagandha Food Supplement A batch of Terranova Fermented Ashwagandha food supplement (2400881; best before date: 05/2028) contains peanuts, which are not declared on the label. This could potentially make the batch unsafe for consumers who have a peanut allergy or intolerance, and therefore, these consumers should avoid consuming the implicated batch. Terra Nova fermented Ashwagandha. Lidl Red Hen Tempura 4 Chicken Steaks. Several batches of Red Hen Tempura 4 Chicken Steaks (380g) fail to include milk in the ingredients list. This could potentially make the batches unsafe for consumers who have a milk allergy or intolerance. The affected batches bear the best before dates of 11/12/2026, 16/12/2026, 22/12/2026, and 30/12/2026. Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news from the Irish Mirror direct to your inbox: Sign up here.
Irish Times
a day ago
- Irish Times
We Don't Use Words Like ‘Crazy': Irish readers will find many points of comparison to this insider's view of the crumbling NHS
We Don't Use Words Like 'Crazy': On The Frontline of Mental Health Author : Elliot Sweeney ISBN-13 : 978-1785122064 Publisher : Blink Publishing Guideline Price : £20 'In mental health , it's not hard to get away with bad practice,' Elliot Sweeney ruefully notes of his chosen career . A nurse in this field for 20 years, he is ideally placed to comment on how some in the profession, are 'more interested in cutting corners, publishing papers and booking holidays than doing some good', while also sympathetic to how difficult the work is, and the gaping holes in provision. The term 'firefighting' is repeated. Sweeney writes specifically of the crumbling NHS , but Irish readers will find many points of comparison with overextended mental health services here, and understand that 'without gallows humour, the bleakness would overwhelm'. READ MORE Some reminders – for example, that mental health is 'a serious business' – may feel a tad obvious to younger generations, used to a certain amount of lip service on this issue, but Sweeney jumps right into the less palatable cases. A mother poisoning her children, suffering from factitious disorder, more colloquially known as Munchhausen's by proxy (a diagnosis medical dramas and crime novels are fond of), is not an immediately sympathetic character. Nor is someone wielding a knife in public – knowing that severe mental illness means one is more likely to be the victim of, rather than perpetrator of, violence does not magic away the real danger of such moments. Sweeney is aware of the tensions between an individual's agency and the risk they pose to themselves or others; with a novelist's eye, he shows rather than tells of the bind health professionals often find themselves in. He knows the system is broken and how many have fled; he's still there. His case studies – careful composites, as is the usual practice in books of this kind – illustrate a variety of suffering and labels, and explore what it means to help in such cases. Sometimes he can't. One particularly volatile patient demonstrates how essential professional boundaries are. [ 'Immense progress': Use of restraint and seclusion in mental health centres falls Opens in new window ] Psychiatrists tend to be the ones writing memoirs such as these; nurses – those who are 'hauled in for answers' if something goes wrong – are less represented. This is a welcome addition to the mental-health-workplace canon from someone not yet burned out: 'Beneath the crackle and static of paranoia,' he writes, 'I hear the pathos of a human in pain. It's this I try to focus on.'
Irish Times
a day ago
- Irish Times
Prison cells likely to be fitted with remote monitors following spike in inmate deaths
Irish prison cells are likely to be fitted with remote 'signs of life' monitors in the near future following a sharp increase in inmate deaths last year. The 'non-intrusive' technology will alert prison staff if an inmate shows signs of a medical emergency. It will be rolled out on a trial basis by the Irish Prison Service (IPS), with Limerick and Cloverhill prisons as the potential first sites, with a view to then introducing it to the wider prison estate. The IPS is currently obtaining advice on the legal implications of such technology. READ MORE The move follows concerns raised by the Office of Inspector of Prisons about a dramatic increase in the deaths of people in custody last year. There were a record 22 deaths in prison custody in 2024, an 83 per cent increase on the previous year. A further nine people died while on temporary release. Preliminary figures for 2025 shows the increase has stabilised somewhat. In the first seven months of the year, eight people died in custody, according to figures provided by the Office of the Inspector of Prisons. One further inmate died after suffering a medical emergency in an open prison and was being transferred to hospital while another died while on temporary release. [ Prison service embarks on €400m building project to ease overcrowding Opens in new window ] The IPS has told the prison watchdog it has established a working group to examine the technology. Photograph: Alan Betson/ The Irish Times The inspectorate has repeatedly criticised the manner in which in the IPS monitors vulnerable inmates. Staff sometimes fail to check on prisoners regularly and have on occasion falsified monitoring records, according to various inspectorate reports. In its most recent report, which concerns the death of a severely mentally-ill Spanish resident in Cloverhill Prison , the inspectorate recommended the introduction of 'remote monitoring of vital signs technology' to improve healthcare monitoring. Similar recommendations were made in relation to the death of another prisoner in 2024. In response, the IPS told the prison watchdog it has established a working group to examine the technology and that Cloverhill and Limerick have been identified as potential sites for a pilot project. It said it was currently undertaking market research to 'identify a product which can provide minimally invasive monitoring of prisoner life signs'. It is also awaiting legal advice from the Chief State Solicitors Office regarding the legality of installing the technology in cells housing vulnerable prisoners, including close supervision cells and special observation cells. A IPS spokesman said on Thursday this assessment was ongoing. Such technology typically monitors several health indicators, including movement, breathing heartbeat and can provide early warning of a medical emergency. It can also monitor signs a prisoner is engaging in self-harm. Last year, Chief Inspector of Prisons Mark Kelly said remote monitoring would be helpful in monitoring prisoners who may have ingested drugs to smuggle them into prison. Relying on a prisoner's cellmate to raise the alarm if they have a medical emergency is not sufficient, he said. 'Nor is visual observation by prison staff from outside their cells always sufficient to detect a risk to life.'
