A seafood company has issued a recall on its Cooked & Peeled Ready-To-Eat Coldwater Shrimp Meat due to a potential listeria contamination.
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced the recall from Bornstein Seafoods Inc., which affects 44,550 pounds of shrimp, after a routine sampling detected listeria monocytogenes.
As noted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), listeria is a “bacteria that can contaminate many foods.” Although symptoms can vary, a listeria infection “can cause invasive illness and intestinal illness.”
Listeria infection is the third leading cause of death from foodborne illness in the United States, killing roughly 260 people per year.
According to the FDA’s report, the shrimp was sold in either one-pound or five-pound bags and was distributed to retailers in California, Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia of Canada.
The affected bags of shrimp are listed alongside the product’s UPC code and lot number in the report. No illnesses have currently been reported.
All customers who have purchased the affected bags of shrimp are urged to return them to the place of purchase in exchange for a full refund. Any questions regarding the recall can be directed to the company using the email address Andrew@bornstein.com.
The recall came on the same day P. East Trading Corp. recalled its Salted Smoked Split Herring because it may have been contaminated with Clostridium botulinum, a bacterium that can cause illness or death.
Botulism is a rare but serious condition caused by a toxin that attacks the body's nerves. Symptoms include general weakness, dizziness, double-vision, trouble with speaking or swallowing, difficulty in breathing, abdominal distension, and constipation.
There have been no reported illnesses so far.
The last two years have also seen an alarming and unexplained rise in recalls. In 2024, approximately 300 food recalls were issued, with those recalls being linked to nearly 1,400 illnesses, a Public Interest Research Group report revealed.
Out of the 1,400 illnesses, 487 people became sick enough to require hospitalization, and 19 people died. While those numbers are still low when weighed against the entire U.S. population, they are also double the number of hospitalizations and deaths from food-borne illnesses in 2023.
