Latest news with #Fresh&Ready
The Star
12-05-2025
- Health
- The Star
Amid listeria outbreak, U.S. company pulls food from shelves
NEW YORK, May 12 (Xinhua) -- A Southland food company has yanked several of its premade food offerings from businesses across California and three other U.S. states after federal regulators found a strain of listeria on its equipment linked to an outbreak first identified last year that has sickened at least 10 people. Fresh & Ready Foods, based in San Fernando, voluntarily recalled several of its premade sandwiches and protein snacks, including several varieties of ham and turkey sandwiches, egg salad sandwiches, tuna pasta, and a street corn dipper snack. The items were sold under three brands: Fresh & Ready Foods, City Point Market Fresh Food to Go, and Fresh Take Crave Away. "The voluntarily recalled food was distributed between April 18 and 28 this year in California, Nevada, Arizona and Washington. It was to be sold in vending machines and other settings in hospitals, hotels, convenience stores and airports, and by airlines. The recalled items have 'Use by' dates from April 22 through May 19," reported the Los Angeles Times on Sunday about the development. The recall was prompted by a routine inspection this April at a Fresh & Ready facility where investigators found a strain of listeria monocytogenes on a piece of equipment, according to news releases by the company and federal officials. Fresh & Ready workers then removed the equipment and took other actions to remedy the issue, the company said in a statement. The symptoms of a listeria infection include fever, muscle aches, fatigue, headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, and even seizures. It can also include intestinal issues such as diarrhea and vomiting.
Yahoo
12-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
'At Least' 10 People Sickened in Outbreak Linked to Prepared Foods
Health officials say "at least" 10 people have been sickened in an ongoing listeria outbreak related to ready-to-eat food products. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Saturday that health officials at the federal, state and local levels are looking into the outbreak, which is linked to products made by Fresh & Ready Foods LLC, according to the Associated Press. Listeria symptoms usually begin within two weeks of eating contaminated food, but can appear on the same day or as late as 10 weeks later. Mild symptoms include fever, muscle aches, nausea, tiredness, vomiting, and diarrhea, with more severe cases producing headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, and convulsions. Pregnant women and newborns, adults aged 65 and over and those with weakened immune systems are at higher risk of becoming ill. The FDA and CDC began investigating the outbreak last year but could not identify a source. The probe was reopened last month after officials found listeria in a sample from Fresh & Ready Foods during routine screening. Six of the 10 people who became sick had been hospitalized before contracting listeria, and the FDA found that Fresh & Ready items had been served in at least three of the health care facilities where the patients had been previously treated. In a press release, Fresh & Ready Foods said it took "immediate corrective actions" and is voluntarily recalling a number of products, which you can find a list of here. The products can be identified by 'Use By' dates from 4/22/2025 to 05/19/2025 and include the brand names Fresh & Ready Foods, City Point Market Fresh Food to Go and Fresh Take Crave Away, the FDA said in a press release. "The recalled products were distributed between 04/18/2025 and 04/28/2025 and sold in Arizona, California, Nevada, and Washington at a variety of locations including retailers and food service locations such as hospitals, hotels, convenience stores, airports, and airlines," the release reads.
Los Angeles Times
12-05-2025
- Health
- Los Angeles Times
Amid listeria outbreak, L.A. company pulls its food from shelves
An L.A.-based food company has yanked several of its premade food offerings from businesses across California and three other states after federal regulators found a strain of listeria on its equipment linked to an outbreak first identified last year that has sickened at least 10 people. Fresh & Ready Foods, based in San Fernando, voluntarily recalled several of its premade sandwiches and protein snacks, including several varieties of ham and turkey sandwiches, egg salad sandwiches, tuna pasta, and a street corn dipper snack. The items were sold under three brands: Fresh & Ready Foods, City Point Market Fresh Food to Go, and Fresh Take Crave Away. The voluntarily recalled food was distributed between April 18 and 28 this year in California, Nevada, Arizona and Washington. It was to be sold in vending machines and other settings in hospitals, hotels, convenience stores and airports, and by airlines. The recalled items have 'Use by' dates from April 22 through May 19. The recall was prompted by a routine inspection this April at a Fresh & Ready facility where investigators found a strain of listeria monocytogenes on a piece of equipment, according to news releases by the company and federal officials. Fresh & Ready workers then removed the equipment and took other actions to remedy the issue, the company said in a statement. The symptoms of a listeria infection include fever, muscle aches, fatigue, headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, and even seizures, according to the CDC. It can also include intestinal issues such as diarrhea and vomiting. Listeria infections are especially serious for anyone who is pregnant, as a listeria infection during pregnancy can cause a patient to miscarry, deliver a stillbirth, or deliver the baby early. It can also cause a life-threatening infection for the newborn. Others who are at a higher danger should they develop a listeria infection are adults 65 and older, and people with weakened immune systems, according to the CDC. The outbreak was originally identified in 2024 when officials at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention started investigating a cluster of people sickened by listeria. They failed to procure enough evidence to identify the source of the outbreak. When investigators found the listeria on the Fresh & Ready equipment this year, scientists at the FDA used whole genome sequencing analysis, which confirmed that the strain of listeria found at Fresh & Ready Foods matched the strain of listeria causing illnesses in the 2024 outbreak. This prompted officials to reopen their investigation. No illnesses have been linked to the recalled food, and instead, Fresh & Ready pulled the items 'as a precautionary measure to ensure the continued safety of our consumers,' the company said in a statement released Saturday. In 2024, at least eight people were sickened by tainted products in California and another two in Nevada, according to the CDC. State and local health officials interviewed six of the people who contracted listeria and found they'd been in the hospital before being sickened by the bacteria. Ready-to-eat foods made by Fresh & Ready Foods were served in at least three of the facilities where the hospitalized patients had been. Anyone who bought food listed in the recall should immediately throw it away, the company said. Consumers can contact Fresh & Ready Foods at RecallConcern@ or by calling (855) 424-8390 from 5 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday to ask questions or request a full refund.
