If you are hosting this year's Thanksgiving, it is best to check your fridge and pantry. The federal health officials are warning people to avoid some foods due to a series of issues like lack of inspection and E.coli.
Here are some foods that must not be served during your Thanksgiving dinner:
Romaine lettuce
Romaine lettuce from Salinas, California, has been recalled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention after 40 people in 16 states got sick because of an E.coli outbreak.
The agency warned the consumers, restaurants, and retailers not to buy or sell all types of romaine lettuce harvested in the town about 60 miles south of San Jose. Frank Yiannas from the Food and Drug Administration said that if the romaine lettuce does not have labeling information for its growing area or the source can't be confirmed, consumers should not eat or use the romaine. Retailers and restaurants should not serve or sell romaine lettuce if they didn't confirm it is from outside Salinas.
Another E.coli outbreak that makes 17 people sick in eight states led to a recall of more than 75,000 pounds of salad products. The cases have been reported in California, Arizona, Idaho, Colorado, Montana, Maryland, Wisconsin, and Washington.
Raw pork products
A company in Illinois recalls half a million pounds of pork products because they were not inspected. The 515,000 pounds of raw pork items were produced and distributed in Illinois, according to the US Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service. They were made between November 25, 2017, to November 9, 2019.
The products include pork back ribs, pork loin, and pork chops. Federal officials received an anonymous tip that the company was making products without an inspection, leading to the recall.
Chicken fried rice
A company in Mississippi recalls 172,692 pounds of chicken fried rice products because they may contain plastic pieces. The frozen chicken fried rice items were made from July 9 to July 11, 2019. The products subject to recall have an establishment number of P-34708 inside the USDA mark of inspection. They were shipped to retail locations in Georgia, Florida, Maryland, Illinois, New Jersey, Michigan, and Texas.
Cheese Nips
Cheese Nips' parent company has issued a voluntary recall for select boxes over contamination with small plastic pieces. Mondelēz Global LLC announced it recalls of 11-ounce boxes of the cheese crackers because of the potential presence of small yellow plastic pieces, according to the Food and Drug Administration.
It is said that the plastic pieces came from a dough scraper that was used during the production process. The Cheese Nips boxes of 11 ounces that have a "best by" date of May 18, 19, and 20 are contaminated.
Cottage cheese
Almost 9,500 cases of cottage cheese are being recalled after a customer found a piece of red plastic in a container. The recall will affect three kinds of Breakstone's cottage cheese.
Kraft Heinz reports that there have been six consumers complaint of contamination, but there are no reports of illness or injury related to the issue. The three cottage cheese products included in the recall are the 4% Milkfat Cottage Cheese and 2% Milkfat Lowfat Large Curd Cottage Cheese. Three batches were recalled with a use-by date of December 10, 2019.
Blackberries
Blackberries from the Fresh Thyme chain of grocery stores caused an outbreak of hepatitis A in Nebraska, Indiana, and Wisconsin. Federal health officials are investigating after people who fell ill reported eating fresh blackberries from the chain store based in Illinois.
Take care of your health this Thanksgiving.
If you feel ill after the festivities, it is best to go to a doctor instead of self-medicating. To be saved, avoid any of the foods listed above so that you can enjoy the holidays.
