The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture has issued a health alert, warning consumers and retailers who have purchased raw milk and raw milk cheese from Stump Acres Dairy in New Salem, York County, to discard it immediately due to the risk of Listeria monocytogenes contamination.
The department noted that the raw milk collected during a 24 April investigation of the farm tested positive for the bacteria. The testing process for Listeria can take up to ten days.
Raw milk is milk that has not been pasteurized. While Pennsylvania law allows farms to sell raw milk, the farms should have a permit and should be inspected by the agriculture department to reduce health risks associated with unpasteurized products.
In 2007, the agriculture department revoked Stump Acres' permit after the health department identified numerous individuals who had become sick after consuming raw milk from the dairy. The farm, located at 1737 Arnold Road in North Codorus Township, currently does not have a permit.
Symptoms of Listeriosis usually appear within one-to-three weeks, but can occur as short as three days or as long as 70 days after consumption. The symptoms include fever, muscle aches and gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea or diarrhea.
If the infection spreads to the nervous system, symptoms such as headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance or convulsions can occur.
