Food & Drink

A bowl (or cup) of listeria soup? These recalls could signal a broader problem coming

A recall of various popular chicken soup and base mixes sold under the Lipton, Knorr and LeGout brands could be the first of many such actions.

Unilever United States, which owns the three brands, recalled the products because they have chicken from a supplier that’s recalled its chicken “due to potential contamination with listeria.”

And, as seen earlier this month with Mann Packing, when an ingredient supplier gets a listeria or salmonella problem, their customers have a listeria or salmonella problem. While Unilever wouldn’t name its supplier, it’ll flow out if there’s a stream of similar recalls.

As for this recall, it covers 14 products. If you have any of these products, click here to check the recalled lot codes.

Lipton: Soup Secrets Chicken Noodle; Cup-a-Soup Chicken Noodle with White Meat; and Cup-a-Soup Hearty Chicken Noodle with White Meat; and Cup-a-Soup Chicken Noodle.

Knorr: Ultimate Chicken Base, Gluten Free; Soup du Jour Chicken Tortilla; Soup du Jour Chicken Gumbo; Soup du Jour Chicken Noodle; Soup du Jour Chicken with Wild and White Rice; Soup du Jour Red Thai Style Curry Chicken with Rice; Soup du Jour Chicken and Dumpling; 095 Low Sodium Chicken base; and 095 Chicken base.

LeGout: Chicken base.

Publix, which announced the recall on its website, sold only the first three types of Lipton soups.

Anyone who has a recalled product should throw them out or return them to the store for a full refund.

Listeria strikes about 1,600 Americans each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About 250 people die from it, usually children under 5, senior citizens and those with damaged immune systems. It can cause stillbirths and miscarriages. In healthy people, nausea, gastrointestinal problems, loss of balance, headaches and fever are common.

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This story was originally published November 26, 2019 at 7:18 PM.

David J. Neal
Miami Herald
Since 1989, David J. Neal’s domain at the Miami Herald has expanded to include writing about Panthers (NHL and FIU), Dolphins, old school animation, food safety, fraud, naughty lawyers, bad doctors and all manner of breaking news. He drinks coladas whole. He does not work Indianapolis 500 Race Day.
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