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Del Monte Is Recalling Canned Corn Due To A Risk Of "Life-Threatening Illness"
Another day, another recall. This time Del Monte Foods is recalling its canned corn due to possible botulism contamination, according to CBS News. The recall was issued Thursday for 25 states and 12 countries, the report stated.
Del Monte, a California-based food production company, recalled more than 64,000 cases of its Fiesta canned corn seasoned with red & green peppers "due to under-processing," the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said on its website.
Translation: your corn could be contaminated with potentially life-threatening pathogens — aka germs — due to this misstep.
Del Monte did not immediately respond to Romper’s request for comment.
One of the life-threatening risks from under-processing is something called botulism, "a rare but potentially deadly illness caused by a poison most commonly produced by a germ called Clostridium botulinum," according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
"The toxin can affect your nerves, paralyze you, and even cause death," the CDC warns. Eek.
Although "there have been no reports of illness associated with these products to date," according to the CDC, it's important to toss your canned corn if its apart of the recall.
All of the recalled corn was sold in "15.25 ounce cans with the UPC number 24000 02770," according to CNN. "They have 'best buy' dates marked on the can of: August 14, 2021; August 15, 2021; August 16, 2021; Sept. 3, 2021; Sept. 4, 2021; Sept. 5, 2021; Sept. 6, 2021; Sept. 22, 2021; Sept. 23, 2021."
The product was sold in 25 states, according to USA Today:
- Alaska
- Alabama
- California
- Connecticut
- Florida
- Georgia
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Kansas
- Louisiana
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- North Carolina
- New Jersey
- New York
- Oklahoma
- Pennsylvania
- South Carolina
- Texas
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- Wisconsin
The international locations include, according to the FDA:
- Bahamas
- Barbados
- Belize
- Bermuda
- El Salvador
- Haiti
- Guyana
- Uruguay
- Aruba
- Panama
- Saint Lucia
- Suriname
Target and Walmart are some of the retailers affected by the recall, according to CBS News.
If you ate the recalled Fiesta Corn recently, keep a close eye on your health in the coming days. Symptoms of botulism include, according to the Mayo Clinic:
- Difficulty swallowing or speaking
- Dry mouth
- Facial weakness on both sides of the face
- Blurred or double vision
- Drooping eyelids
- Trouble breathing
- Nausea, vomiting and abdominal cramps
- Paralysis
It's important to note that becoming ill with botulism is rare. A total of "205 confirmed botulism cases were reported to CDC in 2016," according to a report from the CDC. And 14 percent of those cases were foodborne-related, the report found.
Although these types of recalls can be frightening, rest assured the appropriate agencies are committed to keeping the public safe.
“Things you can have a great deal of faith in can fail. Mistakes can happen. The critical part is when mistakes happen, the federal agencies get alerted quickly and react to them and contain the problem,” The FDA’s Dr. David Acheson, the agency’s lead official on food safety, told NBC News.
To recap, be sure to confirm whether your Fiesta canned corn is apart of the recall. If so, throw out the product ASAP, and keep a close eye on your health over the next few days.
