Ice cream recalled in nearly 20 states for Listeria contamination

A company based out of New York has begun recalling soft serve ice cream cups in 19 states and the District of Columbia, a move prompted by possible Listeria contamination. 

Real Kosher Ice Cream, based in New York, announced the recall in a Wednesday alert on the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) website, saying it affected all flavor options of its Soft Serve On The Go cups from Aug. 4 or earlier.

The product has six different flavors that come in 8-ounce packages, according to the alert.

The recall had been preceded by two people, one in New York and one in Pennsylvania, suffering an illness that led to hospitalization, the alert said.

One person reported falling ill after eating a Soft Serve On The Go cup, a sample from which returned a positive test result for Listeria monocytogenes bacteria to the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.

Eating food that contains Listeria monocytogenes bacteria can lead to listeriosis, a type of infection that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said causes roughly 260 deaths annually.

Such infections are “most likely to sicken pregnant women and their newborns, adults aged 65 and older, and people with weakened immune systems,” per the health agency.

No one has died in connection to the recalled ice cream products as of Wednesday, according to the alert.

Customers may have purchased the recalled products at canteens, grocery stores or convenience stores in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, North Carolina, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia and the nation’s capital.

In the FDA alert, it warned against eating the recalled product.

Instead, it recommended tossing the Soft Serve On The Go cups in the trash or returning them to where they were sold.

Real Kosher Ice Cream said on its website that it chose to recall the Soft Serve On The Go cups because “our highest priority is the safety and well-being of our customers.”