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Listeria Found In Brooklyn Cheese

By Dan Flynn and Suzanna Schreck

Brooklyn's Azteca Linda Corp. this week recalled its fresh white and fresh white string cheeses, known as Queso Fresco and Queso Hebra.

The cheeses may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes.

The recalled cheeses were distributed within New York State (Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, Bronx, Newburgh) and to Bayonne, New Jersey through retail stores between the dates of June 7, 2010 and June 9, 2010.

No illnesses have been associated with the Azteca recall.

The fresh white cheese is packed in a hard plastic container or wrapped in aluminum foil labeled with the brand name Queso El Azteca, UPC 0 23986 92692 8, and expiration date July 7, 2010.

The fresh white string cheese is packaged in a vacuum-sealed plastic bag, Net Weight 14 oz. and Net Weight 5 lbs., and labeled with the brand Queso El Azteca (Queso Oaxaca) with the expiration date of July 7, 2010.

The recall was the result of environmental sampling and inspection by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that revealed that certain areas within the facility contained Listeria bacteria.

Listeria monocytogenes is an organism that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems.

Short-term symptoms include high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea. Listeria infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women.

Consumers with questions may contact Azteca Linda Corp. at 718-418-7459, Monday - Friday, 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. EDT.

Full post as published by Food Safety News on July 03, 2010 (boomark / email).