New Cantaloupe Recall Issued in 21 States, Mexico

WASHINGTONDFI Marketing, Inc., based in Fresno, Calif., is recalling cantaloupes sold to retailers in 21 states and Mexico because they may be contaminated with Salmonella, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced Sept. 12.

The recall involves approximately 28,000 cartons of DFI 826 CALIFORNIA WESTSIDE" bulk-packed cantaloupe packed in six, nine, 12, 15 or 18 cantaloupes per carton. The cantaloupes were packed on Aug. 26, 2012, and distributed to between Aug. 27 and Sept. 10, 2012, to retailers in Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, New York, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and Mexico.

Just last summer, cantaloupes were the cause of an outbreak of Listeria monocytogenes that resulted in the deadliest foodborne illness outbreak in more than 25 years. According to the CDC, 30 people died and 133 persons in 26 states were sickened with the four outbreak-associated strains of Listeria monocytogenes linked to whole cantaloupes grown at Jensen Farms production fields in Granada, Colo. In addition, one woman pregnant at the time of illness had a miscarriage.

Yesterdays recall is the third major cantaloupe recall in the last two months over Salmonella or Listeria. In August, FDA announced the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed that samples of cantaloupe collected at Chamberlain Farms in Owensville, Ind., match the DNA fingerprint of the Salmonella strain responsible for the recent outbreak of Salmonella Typhimurium that has sickened 178 people and killed two people in 21 states.

On Aug. 3, the FDA warned consumers not to consume Caribbean Gold variety cantaloupes from Burch Equipment LLC in North Carolina because they may be contaminated with Listeria. The recall was expanded on Aug. 10 to include all of this growing season's cantaloupes and honeydew melons because they may be contaminated.