Federal health officials say ricotta cheese tainted with listeria bacteria is linked to 14 illnesses including at least one death.
The imported Italian ricotta salata cheese distributed by Forever Cheese Inc. of New York is linked to illnesses in 11 states and the District of Columbia, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Forever Cheese issued a recall of one lot — 800 wheels of ricotta salata, or roughly 4,800 pounds — on Monday.
The cheese was distributed to retail stores and restaurants in California, Colorado, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Washington between June 20 and Aug. 9.
It was not immediately clear how many deaths were caused by the listeria outbreak. The CDC said listeriosis contributed to “at least one” of two deaths in New York and Nebraska but did not elaborate. A spokeswoman for the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene said Wednesday the department was investigating a death linked to the listeria and a spokeswoman for the Nebraska Department of Health said the same strain had contributed to the death of a woman in her 80s.
A third deceased person in Minnesota was infected with listeriosis linked to the cheese but that was not thought to be the primary cause of the person’s death, a spokesman for the Minnesota Department of Health said.
Three people from Maryland reported becoming ill from the strain of listeria linked to the ricotta. One person each from California, Colorado, the District of Columbia, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia also reported an illness. Two of the illnesses were in newborn babies, the CDC said.
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