Old Europe Cheese, Inc. Issues Voluntary Recall of Its Brie and Camembert Cheeses Due to Possible Health Risk

Summary

Company Announcement

Old Europe Cheese, Inc. of Benton Harbor, MI is issuing a voluntary recall of its Brie and Camembert cheeses because of potential contamination with Listeria monocytogenes, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people and others with weakened immune systems. Although healthy individuals may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea, Listeria infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women.

RECALL DETAILS

All Old Europe Cheese Brie and Camembert products with best by dates through 12/14/2022 are subject to the voluntary recall. The products were distributed from August 01, 2022 through September 28, 2022 and were available at supermarkets, wholesale and retail stores nationwide and Mexico; retailers include Albertsons, Safeway, Meijer, Harding’s, Shaw’s, Price Chopper, Market Basket, Raley’s, Save Mart, Giant Foods, Stop & Shop, Fresh Thyme, Lidl, Sprouts, Athenian Foods, Whole Foods. This list may not include all retail establishments that have received the recalled product or may include retail establishments that did not actually receive the recalled product.

The following products being recalled are marked with Best By Dates ranging from September 28, 2022 to December 14, 2022, Retailers may have repackaged bulk Old Europe Cheese items into smaller containers and sold this repackaged product to consumers. This repackaged product may not bear the original labeling and product information as described below:

Consumers who have purchased the stated Brie and Camembert products are urged not to consume it and discard the product. FDA recommends in these cases that anyone who purchased or received any recalled products to use extra vigilance in cleaning and sanitizing any surfaces and containers that may have come in contact with these products to reduce the risk of cross-contamination. Listeria can survive in refrigerated temperatures and can easily spread to other foods and surfaces.

Old Europe Cheese has set up a telephone line to answer any questions about this recall, The number is 269-925-5003 ext 335 and is open Monday through Friday from 9:00am-12:30pm and 2:00pm-4:00pm ET.

BACKGROUND

This action was triggered after a full environmental audit of 120 samples, both of the product and of the company’s facilities. None of the products showed contamination, but one of the facilities’ samples tested positive. The strain from that positive case has been linked to 6 cases of Listeriosis dating from 2017 to 2022. These cases were not previously linked to this company’s products, but Old Europe Cheese decided to do this voluntary recall in order to avoid any risk to their customers

The Company has decided to voluntarily initiate the product recall based on these results and with a focus on their consumers’ health. The source of potential contamination has been identified and Old Europe Cheese is taking active measures to eliminate it. Production of these products has been stopped and will not restart until the Company has full confidence in the effectivity of the applied measures.

The company is working closely with state and federal authorities and with its clients to make this voluntary recall as fast and efficient as possible. The quality and safety of our products is our number one priority. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience caused by this situation. Old Europe Cheese’s top priority is the health of our customers.