Sandwiches and Fruit Cups Sold on Amtrak Are Recalled Over Listeria Risk

Ham sandwiches are seen in a box at the Irish National Ploughing Championships in Tullamore, Ireland September 20, 2016. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne - RTSOM7J

A Baltimore-based company has recalled more than 400 food items sold in Amtrak trains, vending machines and shops across the Eastern Seaboard because of potential listeria contamination, the Food and Drug Administration said last week.

The company, Fresh Ideation Food Group, recalled breakfast sandwiches, muffins, yogurt, fresh produce and other items sold from Jan. 24-30 “because the products have the potential to be contaminated” with listeria bacteria, the FDA said Friday.

Listeria causes an illness that can be fatal, especially among children, older adults and those with weakened immune systems, and an infection that can also cause miscarriages and stillbirths.

The recall applies to products with a “sell through” date from Jan. 31 to Feb. 6. The affected products were distributed in Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Virginia.

“During routine monitoring of our facility, we determined that listeria may be present in the facility,” the company said in a prerecorded statement. “In an abundance of caution, we have recalled all products made at the time of this finding.”

The FDA said Monday that no illnesses had been reported. Consumers who have purchased any of the items are encouraged to contact Fresh Ideation.

A company spokesperson did not immediately respond to messages seeking more information.

In an email to customers, Amtrak said that some of the recalled products had been sold on two of its busiest train lines, the Acela and Northeast Regional trains, between Jan. 24-29.

“We immediately stopped serving these products and promptly removed them from our trains upon notification,” the company said, adding that “all products currently served onboard are completely safe to consume.”

Symptoms of listeria can include fever, muscle aches, vomiting and diarrhea, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The symptoms generally begin roughly two weeks after ingesting food laced with the bacteria.

In the United States, past listeria outbreaks have been connected to undercooked poultry, raw vegetables and unpasteurized milks and ice cream, the FDA said.

Big Olaf Creamery, a family-owned business in Sarasota, Florida, recalled its ice cream amid an FDA investigation last summer into an outbreak that killed at least one person and sickened two dozen other people.

At least one person died and 13 others were hospitalized during a listeria outbreak last fall that federal officials tied to deli meat and cheeses. Among those sickened during the outbreak was a pregnant person who lost the pregnancy, the FDA said.

Pregnant women are 10 times more likely than other people to become infected, according to the CDC.

About 1,600 people get listeriosis in the United States each year, according to the CDC, and about 1 in 5 people with the infection die.

This article was first published in the New York Times.