Listeria alert issued for Hello Fresh Meals

US health authorities have issued an alert regarding possible listeria in Hello Fresh ready-to-eat meals. Two products shipped to consumers containing spinach may be contaminated with listeria, which can cause serious health problems and even death in vulnerable people.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) issued a health alert Monday evening after FreshRealm, a contractor that produces the meals for Hello Fresh, conducted regular tests on its spinach for listeria monocytogenes which came back positive.

The two products to watch out for include pulled pork and cheese pasta and unstuffed peppers with ground turkey, according to the warning posted online by FSIS:

• 10.1 oz. containers of “HELLO FRESH READY MADE MEALS CHEESY PULLED PORK PIPPER PASTA” bearing the establishment number “Est. 47718” and lot code 49107 or establishment number “Est. 2937” and lot code 48840.
• 10 oz. containers of “HELLO FRESH READY TO MAKE UNSTUFFED PEPPERS WITH GROUND TURKEY” bearing establishment number “P-47718” and lot codes 50069, 50073 or 50698.

There have been no confirmed reports of anyone getting sick from Hello Fresh products, but many food illnesses go unreported in the United States. When it comes to listeria, the greatest concern is among pregnant women, newborns, people 65 and older, and people with compromised immune systems, according to the CDC, all of whom can have the worst consequences.

FreshRealm has been at the center of several food recalls recently, including a listeria outbreak that sickened at least 20 people and killed four. This recall involves prepared pastas that were distributed to major retailers like Walmart and Trader Joe’s, among a host of other grocery chains. The pasta recall involved one of FreshRealm’s suppliers, Nate’s Fine Foods, although in the case of this new Hello Fresh health alert, FreshRealm is the only company mentioned.

The CDC estimates that about 1,250 people in the United States become ill from listeria each year, and 172 people die from it. Listeria is the third leading cause of foodborne illness in the country. Norovirus is most prevalent among Americans, with an estimated 5.5 million illnesses and 22,400 hospitalizations. But salmonella is the deadliest, causing about 238 deaths each year, according to the CDC.

Consumers with questions about the recall impacting Hello Fresh Meals are encouraged to contact the FreshRealm customer service hotline at 1-888-244-1562 or (email protected), according to FSIS.

FreshRealm did not immediately respond to questions Tuesday afternoon. Gizmodo will update this article as soon as we receive a response.