US-based Sabra Dipping, has voluntarily issued a recall for multiple hummus varieties for possible contamination with Listeria monocytogenes.
Hummus products manufactured prior to November 8 have been recalled after the contamination was detected at the company’s manufacturing facility. Sabra has maintained that the contamination was not in tested finished product.
FDA said that it had detected 27 swabs of the processing environment that contained listeria strains during an inspection at Sabra’s manufacturing plant in Colonial Heights, Virginia.
The food manufacturer known for producing Middle Eastern-style food products said that the products recalled were distributed across retail outlets, including supermarkets and food service accounts in both the US and Canada.
While a number of products have been listed for recall, the company said that Sabra Organic Hummus and Sabra Guacamole, Sabra Greek Yogurt Dips and Sabra Salsa were not affected by the contamination.
Sabra Dipping CEO Shali Shalit Shoval said: “Subsequent to the inspection conducted with the FDA, we implemented a thorough and extensive factory-wide cleaning and sanitation procedure, and beyond that, we continue to work very closely with internal and external food safety experts to identify any additional steps we can take to even further enhance our efforts.”
Products bearing “Best Before” dates of up to January 23, 2017 are to be discarded by the consumers, said the company.
This is not the first time that Sabra had to recall its products for fear of listeria contamination. Last year, it recalled 30,000 cases of Classic Hummus products throughout the US.
Young children, frail or elderly people and others having weakened immune systems are considered to be susceptible of contracting serious and fatal infections by consuming Listeria mococytongese contaminated foods. Pregnant women can face miscarriages and stillbirths if they consume the listeria-contaminated food.