Late this July, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced a widespread recall on deli meats for contamination with listeria, which can cause serious illness and even death. So far, the outbreak has led to more than 40 hospitalizations and three deaths, with contaminated products spread out over 13 different states. In total, more than seven million pounds of meat have been recalled, a number that does not account for the additional opened products that the USDA’s Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) recommends that delis discard because they might have shared equipment with the recalled products.
Ultimately, it’s up to retailers to remove affected products from the case and sterilize equipment properly. That may or may not happen given that the USDA doesn’t check every retailer, so consumers are taking on a significant amount of risk in trusting that their deli or grocery store took those steps.
