Flavoured butter sold by Tesco could contain potentially toxic levels of bacteria known to cause food poisoning, the supermarket has warned.
Tesco has said customers should throw away nine types of flavoured butter sold and given away in its stores over fears that they could contain Listeria monocytogenes, a bacteria known to cause food poisoning in pregnant women and the vulnerable.
Five of the nine affected butter discs are offered free to customers at Tesco's fresh fish and meat counters. Customers are advised to discard these complimentary products.
All packs and all ‘use-by’ dates of the following Tesco butters are being recalled:
The following complimentary butter discs, which are offered to customers at the fresh meat and fish counters, are also affected. Customers are advised to throw them away.
No other Tesco products are known to be affected.
Listeriosis is an infection that usually develops after eating food contaminated by listeria bacteria, according to the NHS.
In most people, listeriosis is mild and causes symptoms including a high temperature, vomiting and diarrhoea. These symptoms usually pass within three days without the need for treatment.
However, in rare cases, the infection can be more severe and spread to other parts of your body, causing serious complications, such as meningitis. Common signs of severe listeriosis include a stiff neck, severe headache and tremors.
The Food Standards Agency said that pregnant women are 20 times more likely than other women to get listeriosis, the food illness associated with listeria. Symptoms include a mild flu-like illness and a stiff neck. It can lead to miscarriage, stillbirth or life long health problems for unborn children.
