Canadian Cheese Recalled in the U.S.

Just a little over a year ago, my post of 12/22/10 was titled "Is Cheese our most Dangerous Food?" Compared to 2010, and particularly the last six months of that year, 2011 has not been such a bad one for cheese recalls in the U.S. But all the same, we have had quite a few. Most of them, as usual, were due to Listeria monocytogenes bacteria turning up in the cheese. And, as usual, raw cheeses proved to be the riskiest.

Over the holiday period we had another cheese recall. Kradjian Imp Co, Glendale, CA is recalling 231 Cases, 22Lb / Cs of Cedar brand Tresse Cheese, 16 oz and Cedar brand Shinglish cheese, 16 oz because of Listeria monocytogenes.

These two cheeses were imported by Kradjian from Canada from a supplier named Fromagerie Marie Kade of Quebec. The cheeses were made with pasteurized milk - not raw milk this time.

Check your cheeses especially if you live in Southern California and tend to shop at Mediterranean speciality markets. Both cheeses are vacuum packed and bear the picture of a green cedar tree (see illustration).

Again - a special caution for pregnant women and anyone else with a seriously weakened immune system. This bacteria has a high fatality rate.

To your good health,

TSF

update 1/22/12: This outbreak is still very much ongoing and expanding. The geographic area has also expanded to include: Southern California, Northern California, Washington State, Minnesota, Nevada, Oklahoma, Texas, Tennessee,Arizona and Michigan.