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It’s usually not hard to tell when dairy products have expired or gone bad due to sitting around for too long. But when it comes to potential health hazards created by the production side of things, it’s the FDA’s job to step in and keep consumers safe. And so far this summer, the agency has rolled out a few dairy-related recalls.
On Aug. 5, the FDA announced that Colorado-based Royal Crest Dairy had issued a voluntary recall of its Farmer’s 2% Reduced Fat Chocolate Milk Pints. The company decided to pull the product from shelves after discovering it could contain egg, which is a potential allergen.ae0fcc31ae342fd3a1346ebb1f342fcb
And on Aug. 10, the FDA warned the public that Lyons Magnus LLC had expanded a recent recall to include 88 of its products—including some milk and non-dairy items—after discovering they could have been potentially contaminated with potentially dangerous Cronobacter sakazakii bacteria. The list includes items from Aloha, Cafe Grumpy, Ensure Harvest, Glucerna, Imperial, Intelligentsia, Kate Farms, Lyons Barista Style, Lyons Ready Care, MRE, Oatly, Optimum Nutrition, Organic Valley, PediaSure Harvest, Pirq, Premier Protein, Rejuvenate, Sated, Stumptown, Sweetie Pie Organics, Tone It Up, and Uproot.
Now, a retailer is pulling another dairy product from shelves.
On Aug. 19, the FDA announced that Colorado-based Epicurean Butter LLC had issued a voluntary recall of the Wegmans Lemon Dill Finishing Butter it produces for the popular regional grocery store chain. The affected items are packaged in 3.5-ounce black plastic cups with a Wegmans label on the lid.
According to the notice, the company distributed them to Wegmans locations in Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. The complete list of lot numbers and pertaining “Best By” dates can be found on the FDA’s notice, which the company clarified were the only items affected by the recall.
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According to the agency’s notice, Epicurean Butter pulled the product from shelves after discovering it could potentially be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. The company said it had received a warning from its herb supplier that certain lots of frozen dill used in making the item were at risk of carrying the dangerous bacteria.
The FDA says that most healthy people will develop short-term systems after ingesting the microorganism, including high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. However, infections can be deadly for some who are young, elderly, or immunocompromised. They can also cause miscarriages or stillbirths in those who are pregnant.
Fortunately, no customers have reported any illnesses related to the recalled product. But the FDA advises anyone who purchased the affected items to return them to their place of purchase for a full refund. Anyone with questions can also reach the company by calling 303-427-5527 on weekdays from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. MST.