Commissioner of Agriculture Tommy Irvin announced Feb. 17 that Georgia Department of Agriculture food scientists have found Listeria monocytogenes in a store sample of packaged Oscar Mayer Ready to Eat Chicken Breast Strips With Rib Meat.

The contamination was found in a six-ounce packaged sample marked as Grilled Fully Cooked and Ready to Eat with a code USE BY 19 APR 2007 18:35D. Each package bears the establishment number “19676” inside the USDA mark of inspection.

Consumption of food contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes can cause listeriosis, an uncommon but potentially serious disease.

The most common manifestation of listeriosis is meningitis, which has symptoms of high fever, severe headache, neck stiffness and nausea.

Listeriosis can also cause miscarriages and stillbirths, as well as serious and sometimes fatal infections to infants, the elderly and those with weakened immune systems such as persons with chronic diseases or taking chemotherapy for cancer.

“We have notified the U.S. Department of Agriculture of today’s lab findings and that we would be warning the public about the discovery,” said Commissioner Irvin. “Sampling on a regular basis with a scientific protocol is a very important part of our food safety program.”

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