Soft serve ice cream cups produced by Real Kosher Ice Cream of Brooklyn, New York, have been recalled after being linked to a Listeria outbreak, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced.
The Real Kosher Ice Cream company voluntarily issued a recall of its ice cream products that are sold under the brand name Soft Serve On The Go after reports of illness in two states were linked to the frozen dessert.
“The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture collected an unopened sample of Soft Serve On The Go from an ill person’s home,” the FDA said in a news release on Aug. 10. “This sample was reported as positive for Listeria monocytogenes.”
Two cases of Listeria were reported with hospitalizations, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. No deaths have been reported.
“Whole genome sequencing analysis is still pending to determine this is the same strain of Listeria causing the illness in this outbreak,” the FDA said.
Soft Serve On The Go ice cream cups are sold in grocery stores, convenience stores, and canteens across the nation. Real Kosher Ice Cream also distributes the product to schools, camps, nursing homes, and long-term care facilities across the nation.
The company has recalled all flavors of its soft serve and sorbet products produced up to Aug. 4, according to the FDA.
The flavors affected by the recall include vanilla chocolate, parve vanilla chocolate, razzle, peanut butter lite, caramel, and sorbet strawberry mango.
It comes packaged in an 8-ounce clear plastic cup with a clear plastic cover and a spoon attached.
The ice cream cups were distributed to 19 states and Washington, D.C. The states included in the recalled product are California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Massachusets, Maryland, Minnesota, North Carolina, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia.
The FDA recommends consumers check their freezers for Soft Serve On The Go products. If you have the product, throw it away or return it to the store where it was purchased for a refund.
Do not eat the recalled product because Listeria can survive in freezing temperatures, the CDC warned.
What Is Listeria?
Listeria monocytogenes is a bacteria that is often transmitted to humans through food sources. When someone eats food that is contaminated with the pathogen, they can develop a disease called listeriosis, according to the FDA.Symptoms of mild infection may include fever, muscle aches, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, and may last for days or weeks. More severe symptoms can include stiff neck, headache, confusion, and convulsions.
Symptoms may begin within hours or up to three days after eating contaminated food, while severe forms of the disease could take up to three months to develop.
Pregnant women, children, the elderly, and those with compromised immune systems or chronic diseases are at the greatest risk of developing severe forms of the illness. It can be fatal in some cases.
Past Listeriosis outbreaks have been linked to raw, unpasteurized milk and cheeses, raw or processed fruits, and raw or uncooked meats and fish. It has also been found in raw pet food.
It is important to seek medical care if you suspect you may have eaten contaminated food.
Last month, three people in Washington state died from a listeria outbreak. Two others also developed severe infections during the outbreak caused by an unknown source, according to the Washington State Department of Health.
