Food Safety Alert: Possible Listeria Contamination in Fruit

Mesa County Public Health has been made aware of a recall involving peaches, plums, and nectarines that may have been distributed in Mesa County. These products are no longer available at retail stores, however consumers might have frozen the fruit to use at a later time. The fruit is being recalled due to a potential contamination of Listeria monocytogenes. The recall has been linked to eleven illnesses. 

Description of Recalled Products

• HMC Farms sold the fruit in stores including Walmart, Sam’s Club, Albertsons, and Sprouts.
• The fruit was sold between May 1 and November 15, 2022 and between May 1 and November 15, 2023.
• The fruit was sold as individual pieces and in packaging.
• Recall involves conventionally grown fruit. No organic fruit is being recalled.

What Should Consumers Do

• Check freezers for recalled products.
• Consumers should not eat these products and should discard them.
• Click here to see additional pictures of the recalled fruit.

Listeria Description and Treatment

• Eating food contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes can cause listeriosis. This can cause a serious infection in young children, older adults, persons with weakened immune systems, and pregnant women and their newborns.
• Symptoms of listeriosis include fever, muscle aches, headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, and gastrointestinal symptoms.
• In pregnant women, the infection can cause miscarriages, stillbirths, premature delivery or life-threatening infection of the newborn. 
• Serious and sometimes fatal infections are possible in older adults and persons with weakened immune systems. 
• Listeriosis is treated with antibiotics. Persons in the higher-risk categories who experience flu-like symptoms within two months after eating contaminated food should seek medical care.