KEY POINTS

  • Listeria pathogen was found in a salad kit during a random testing
  • Affected salads were produced at the company's Morrow, Georgia, facility
  • Customers can contact the company to get a refund

Fresh Express has voluntarily recalled some of its salad kits over concerns about listeria. The products are already expired, but they are being recalled "out of an abundance of caution."

The salads were recalled after the Georgia Department of Agriculture's random testing of a single salad kit turned out to be positive for the listeria pathogen, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The tested salad kit had a Use-By date of March 31, 2023.

People can contract listeriosis if they consume food contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. It is most likely to sicken older people, newborns, those with weakened immune systems and pregnant women.

In fact, pregnant women are said to be 10 times more likely to get a listeria infection than others. In them, the infection may lead to complications like stillbirth, miscarriage and preterm labor.

There have been no reports of illnesses related to the recalled products.

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The recall affects a "limited quantity" of salad kits. They were produced at Fresh Express' facility in Morrow, Georgia, and came under the brand names Fresh Express and Publix.

Affected salad kits include the 9.40-ounce "Caesar Chopped Kit" With the UPC code 00071279309194 and use-by date of 4/2/2023. They were distributed in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina. The company also recalled Fresh Express 11.3-ounce "Chopped Kit Chipotle Cheddar" with the UPC code 00071279306049. Its use-by date was the same and was also distributed in Virginia apart from the other four states.

The affected Publix 8.75-ounce "Makoto Honey Ginger Salad Kit" had the UPC code 00071279309194 and use-by date of 3/31/2023. It was distributed in three states: Florida, North Carolina and Georgia.

All of them had the product code GO75.

The expiration dates of these recalled salads have already passed. They are no longer available for sale, and retailers have been told to remove them from inventory. The company issued the recall "out of an abundance of caution."

"Consumers who might still have the recalled products in their refrigerators should discard and not consume them," the FDA warned.

Those who have questions or want to get a refund can contact the Fresh Express Consumer Response Center at (800) 242-5472.

Salad, Food, Vegetables, veggies,
Representative image of a salad. Jill Wellington/Pixabay
Recall