Grocery store recalls cheeses after bacteria outbreak

While certain unforeseen events can take a food producer by surprise, it should be in a company’s best interest to be honest and display helpful facts on its food labels. And if something disastrous emerges, then proper labeling might help officials trace where something went wrong. The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced a warning for a dangerous recent outbreak that has sprung from different cheese products from the Crave Brothers Farmstead Cheese Company line.

A release from the FDA last week urges caution in regards to a wave of “Listeria monocytogenes” infections spread by these cheeses. This is described as a serious disease, and five victims have been identified as infected across states such as Indiana, Minnesota and Illinois.

The offending products include the “Les Freres” and “Petit Frere” brands. The same day that the announcement came out, Whole Foods Market also announced a recall of these products, and will reportedly be using in-store notifications to alert shoppers.

The FDA statement contains warnings to both consumers and retailers to maintain high hygiene standards and keep all surfaces of product contact clean. Another prevention measure includes ensuring that grocery stores check dairy product food labels and dispose of items that are past their expiration dates.

A Primera LX900 color label printer can be helpful in limiting these kinds of outbreaks by drawing attention to possible risk factors and other health concerns. A recall is damaging and inconvenient for production in any circumstances, but keeping the potential for dangerous outbreaks at a minimum can all be traced back to good labeling practices.