Ice cream lovers beware! According to the US Food and Drug Administration, Nestlé has launched a nationwide recall of some of its delicious Drumstick ice cream cones after testing positive for Listeria monocytogenes (LM) in a sunny California factory, where the treats are created.
Meanwhile, there have been no reports of consumers getting sick and none of the Drumstick products have tested positively for LM, themselves.
However, the company’s equipment, located on a production line at its facility in Bakersfield, California, tested positive for the serious and sometimes fatal infection, according to a company statement.
Per the FDA, the voluntary recall includes Drumstick’s Club 16 count Variety Pack and the 24 count Vanilla Pack (with cones marked for easy individual sale), which were crafted between August 31 and September 17. No other production codes, sizes or varieties of Nestlé Drumstick products are affected by the recall.
The affected product identification codes are available here.
Though it appears Nestlé detected the problem through its internal testing, the products were inadvertently shipped to stores due to an error “logging receipt of the test result.” The company is however, taking the health risk seriously, urging “consumers who may have purchased the product listed above should not consume it, but instead should return it to the place of purchase or contact Nestlé Consumer Services for replacement. Please call or text 1-800-681-1676 or email [email protected]; representatives are available 24/7.”
Listeria can be deadly
Listeria monocytogenes, also called LM, can cause severe and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, as well as those with weakened immune systems.
Although healthy individuals may only suffer short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea, Listeria infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women.
In the United States, an estimated 1,600 people become seriously ill with Listeria each year; with about 16% of the cases resulting in death.
Fortunately for Drumstick lovers, the recent recall is nothing like Blue Bell’s scare a short year ago. In April 2015, Blue Bell ice cream recalled its ice cream, frozen yogurt, sherbet and other frozen treats in 23 states, after a deadly outbreak of Listeria. According to the Center for Disease Control, the outbreak which dated back to 2010, resulted in 10 people falling ill in four states, as well as three deaths in Kansas.
Nestlé stated that while both recalls involve Listeria and ice cream, the similarities ended there.
“Our situation is much different from Blue Bell’s in a number of significant ways, including: (1) we have received no reports of human illnesses; (2) we have no listeria findings in the ice cream itself (just the equipment); (3) we have only one product line affected; (4) we have only one facility affected; and (5) we self-identified this event and took precautionary steps to recall product.,” Nestle said in a statement.
By subscribing, you consent to receive emails from BlackDoctor.com. You may unsubscribe at any time. Privacy Policy & Terms of Service.
