Walmart Pre-Cut Fruit Recalled Because Of Listeria Concerns

Another day, another recall. This time it's pre-cut fruit shipped to Walmart distribution centers before being sent to Walmart stores in 9 states.

And, as you may have guessed, I wouldn't be wasting your time with this story if Illinois didn't happen to be one of those nine states.

If you're a canned fruit fan, or you eat fruit about as often as you celebrate birthdays, there's nothing for you to worry about or take action on. However, if fruit is a daily companion to the other foods you keep around the house, you may have one of these recalled products.

The recall, a voluntary recall by Country Fresh, is focused on pre-cut fruits that you may have purchased at a Rockford area (or any Illinois) Walmart. When the recall was first announced, it only covered pre-cut watermelon.

The scope of the recall has now been expanded to include  apples, grapes, mangos, pineapples, and cantaloupe, all of which were distributed by Walmart, according to the FDA's website.

So what's the problem with the fruit? There are concerns that it could be contaminated with listeria. Should you happen to eat something contaminated with listeria, you could find yourself with listeriosis. The Centers For Disease Control And Prevention (CDC) says that listeriosis can cause a variety of symptoms, and some groups (young children, elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems) are at higher risk of severe illness.

For pregnant women, symptoms of invasive listeria may present as fever or other flu-like symptoms, and can also cause miscarriage, stillbirth, premature delivery, or life-threatening infection of the newborn. In non-pregnant patients, symptoms often include headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, and convulsions.

The recall affects product codes of various fresh fruit items shipped directly to Walmart retail distribution centers and sent to select stores located in AR, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MO, OK, and TX. The products were packaged in various size clam shell containers. The “best if used by” dates are between October 3, 2020 and October 11, 2020 and the products are as follows: