Two Dead Amid Current Listeria Outbreak, 26 Hospitalized

The CDC is alerting the public to a multistate outbreak of Listeria.

So far 26 people have been hospitalized and two residents in a retirement home in Ottawa, Canada have died as a result of the parasite.

Wyoming so far has not had any reports of Listeria, but neighboring state Colorado has had four confirmed cases.

Other states have seen cases including: Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona, Texas, Tennessee, North Carolina, Georgia, and Florida.

The outbreak has been investigated twice before, in 2017 and 2021. There was not enough data to identify a source until the most recent investigation in January.

The recalled products include cheese, yogurt, and sour cream sold under the brand names Tio Francisco, Don Francisco, Rizo Bros, Rio Grande, Food City, El Huache, La Ordena, San Carlos, Campesino, Santa Maria, Dos Ranchitos, Casa Cardenas, and 365 Whole Foods Market.

What You Should Do:

• Do not eat any recalled cheeses or dairy products.
• Throw them away or return them to where you bought them.
• Clean the refrigerator, containers, and surfaces that may have touched the recalled products.
• Listeria can survive in the refrigerator and can easily spread to other foods and surfaces.
• Call a healthcare provider right away if you have these symptoms after eating recalled products:
• Pregnant people usually have fever, muscle aches, and tiredness.
• People who are not pregnant usually have fever, muscle aches, and tiredness.
• They may also get a headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, or seizures.

Listeria Symptoms:

• Listeria is especially harmful to people who are pregnant, aged 65 or older, or with weakened immune systems. This is because Listeria is more likely to spread beyond their gut to other parts of their body, resulting in a severe condition known as invasive listeriosis.
• For people who are pregnant, Listeria can cause pregnancy loss, premature birth, or a life-threatening infection in their newborn.
• For people who are 65 years or older or who have a weakened immune system,
• Listeria often results in hospitalization and sometimes death.
• Symptoms usually start within 2 weeks after eating food contaminated with
• Listeria but may start as early as the same day or as late as 10 weeks after.
• Pregnant people usually have fever, muscle aches, and tiredness.
• People who are not pregnant usually have fever, muscle aches, and tiredness.
• They may also get a headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, or seizures.