There were packs of fully cooked Oscar Mayer chicken breast strips that were suspected of being contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes are being withdrawn from the market, as announced by the US Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service on February 18, 2007. The chicken breast strips were produced for Oscar Mayer and were distributed in all states.

Product Details and Recall Information

The affected products are in 6-ounce packs which were labeled “Oscar Mayer/Louis Rich Chicken Breast Strips with Rib Meat, Grilled, Fully Cooked – Ready to Eat.” The front of every pack has the company number “P-19676” inside the USDA mark of inspection. At the back of the pack, it has a “Use by” date of “19 Apr 2007.” The code “19 Apr 2007 appears on every pack.

Carolina Culinary Foods,  West Columbia, SC, and Kraft Foods recalled voluntarily their packs of chicken breasts. Consumers with inquiries about the recall could contact Kraft Consumer Response at 800-871-7117.

No Reports of Listeriosis or Related Illness

There were no reports of diseases linked with the consumption of the products received by the USDA.

Consumption of food contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes can cause listeriosis, a rare but potentially fatal disease. Healthy people are not easily sick with listeriosis. Listeriosis can result to high fever, severe headaches, neck stiffness, and nausea.

Advice for Consumers

Consumers are alerted not to use the affected packs of chicken breast strips, even if the food does not appear or smell spoiled. If consumers have any of the affected chicken breast in their homes, they should not use them and destroy them immediately and properly.

People who are suffering any unusual health problems after eating or coming into contact with the infected chicken breast strips should seek medical attention right away.