February 21, 2007

Cooked chicken breasts recalled for listeria contamination in the US

A US chicken producer has issued a recall for 52,650 pounds of fully cooked chicken breasts produced on 9 January and distributed nationwide to retailers after a sample was tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes.

The bacteria can cause pneumonia and infections and spontaneous abortions in pregnant women.

The recall was prompted after a USDA lab tested a sample of Oscar Mayer chicken breast strips and discovered the bacteria.

Carolina Culinary Foods of West Columbia, SC said there have been no reported cases of illness linked to the recalled chicken so far.

The chicken breast recall is the fourth food recall in a week in the US.

Other food recalls include organic baby food contaminated by Clostridium botulinum and peanut butter which were believed to be contaminated by salmonella.

Production and distribution of the baby food has been suspended while the FDA and the company work to determine the source of the contamination.