saladOver the weekend the River Ranch Fresh Foods company announced a recall of their bagged salad for California and Colorado. But guess what, nation? That recall has been expanded nationally. Routine testing detected listeria contamination.

Dang, I hate it when this happens to bagged salad! And we just had another salad recall last month. But at least I've gotten back into the habit of washing my salad, even when the package reads "triple washed." Anyway, fortunately no illnesses have been reported so far. But here's the info you'll need to check and see if you're affected.

The salad is sold under the following names: River Ranch, Farm Stand, Hy-Vee, Marketside, Shurfresh, The Farmer's Market, Cross Valley, Fresh n Easy, Promark, and Sysco. And you'll want to check the "best by" dates, located (usually) in the upper right hand corner of the bags: Between May 12 and May 29 or Julian dates of 118 and 125. You can get more specific information here from the FDA.

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And now -- do you know the symptoms for listeria contamination? It's a stiff neck, headache, and high fever. Pregnant women, the elderly, and children are especially vulnerable to listeriosis, which can become sepsis or meningitis.

Okay, hopefully none of you have bags of salad answering to these descriptions in your refrigerator! Keep your fridge cold (under 40 degrees) and wash those greens.

Do you buy bagged salad? If so, do you usually wash it even if it's pre-washed?

 

Image via Nick Saltmarsh/Flickr