Frozen Waffle Recall Over Possible Listeria Contamination Expanded

A recall of frozen waffles and other breakfast products sold in many U.S. grocery stores has expanded on Tuesday over possible listeria contamination.
TreeHouse Foods Inc. has expanded its initial recall of frozen waffles, pancakes and other popular toaster items over concerns of listeria contamination.
The Illinois-based company announced Tuesday that all products manufactured at its Ontario, Canada, plant are now included in the recall. The potentially tainted items—sold under various labels, including Walmart’s Great Value and Target’s Good & Gather—were distributed to major retailers like Aldi, Dollar General, Publix and Kroger.
While no illnesses have been reported, officials urge consumers to discard the products or return them for refunds.
The recall initially began on October 18 after routine testing uncovered traces of listeria at a Brantford, Ontario, facility. Further investigation revealed possible contamination on additional production lines, prompting an expansion of the recall.
The company has since halted operations at the plant and committed to deep-cleaning and other preventive measures before resuming production.
TreeHouse Foods, which operates 26 facilities across the U.S. and Canada, stated that no other locations are affected by the recall.
Listeria is a particularly resilient bacterium that can cause severe health complications, particularly for pregnant women, the elderly, newborns and those with weakened immune systems
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), listeria is the third leading cause of death from foodborne illness in the United States and is responsible for roughly 1,600 cases of food poisoning annually in the U.S. with around 260 fatalities. Symptoms of listeria infection can surface shortly after exposure or may take up to 10 weeks to appear, making it challenging to trace the source of contamination.
Signs and symptoms vary depending on the person and the site of the infection. In most cases, the bacteria stay within the gut and cause the stereotypical symptoms of food poisoning, such as diarrhea and vomiting. Usually, these symptoms start within 24 hours of eating contaminated food and last for one to three days.
This recall marks the third major listeria-related food safety incident in the U.S. this year. Previous recalls include Boar’s Head, which pulled more than 7 million pounds of deli meat in July, and BrucePac, which recalled nearly 12 million pounds of meat and poultry earlier this month. Both cases also stemmed from routine listeria testing.
Fifty-nine hospitalizations and 10 deaths have resulted from the listeria outbreak that has been linked to the recalled Boar’s Head deli meat, the CDC reported last month.
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press.