Bagged popcorn recalled over possible listeria contamination

The popcorn manufacturer “Popcorn, Indiana” has issued a voluntary recall of several ready-to-eat bags of popcorn due to a possible contamination of Listeria monocytogenes – bacteria that can cause serious infection.

According to Popcorn, Indiana’s product recall site, bags that were distributed on or after Aug. 8th, 2012 with ‘Best By’ dates between Feb. 4th, 2013, and March 12th, 2013, should be thrown away or returned for a full refund or replacement.  The bags were colored red and came in various sizes.

Consumers can also determine which bags are being recalled by checking the Bag UPC (code) located in the nutritional panel on bottom of the bag.  A full list of recalled bags can be found on the company’s website.

Apart from the recalled bags, Popcorn, Indiana - part of the company Dale and Thomas Popcorn - maintains that the rest of their products are safe for consumption.

“Nothing is more important to us than the health and safety of those who buy our popcorn and the employees who make up our company,” Popcorn, Indiana states on their website. “We hold ourselves to standards that are among the highest in the industry, and as such, we regularly conduct testing beyond FDA requirements.”

Listeria can be a serious infection that usually affects elderly people, pregnant women, infants and those that with weakened immune systems, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  Often caused by eating contaminated food, listeria symptoms occur within two months of eating the contaminated food and include diarrhea and other gastrointestinal symptoms, followed by high fever and muscle aches.  Listeria infection is easily treated with antibiotics but can sometimes be fatal – particularly for the elderly or those with severe medical problems.

Click for more information on the recall from Popcorn, Indiana.