A talk about Listeria with the Mirror US

Averee Nelson Lifestyle Reporter and I spoke a few days ago: Frozen food Listeria outbreak could be ‘incredibly deadly’ due to unique problem, expert says

Food Poisoning Attorney Bill Marler shares expertise on what makes Listeria outbreaks in food manufacturing plants so severe for people.

A food safety expert warns that the recent Listeria outbreak over various ready-to-eat pasta meals sold at Walmart, Kroger, and Trader Joe’s can be “incredibly deadly.”

These meals have been distributed at grocery retailers across the U.S. Albertsons has also recalled several of its store-made deli products due to Listeria, so grocery shopping may feel like a daunting task right now.

Bill Marler, a Food Safety Advocate & Food Poisoning Attorney at Marler Clark, The Food Safety Law Firm, shared his expert insight and over 30 years of experience litigating foodborne illness cases with the Mirror US about the recent Listeria outbreak.

The CDC has been documenting the cases of Listeria in this outbreak, and illnesses were first reported back in August 2024. Since then, there have been 20 cases of illness and 19 hospitalizations across 15 states, as well as four reported deaths that occurred in Illinois, Michigan, Texas, and Utah.

There are unexpected risks when consuming foods from the grocery store, and the illness caused by Listeria contamination can be severe.

Why are Listeria outbreaks serious?

While all foodborne illness outbreaks are serious and have the potential to turn deadly, the Listeria bacteria is unique, as it’s extremely difficult to eradicate.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration describes Listeria monocytogenes as “a type of disease-causing bacteria that can be found in many places, including soil, water, sewage, rotting vegetation, and animals.”

It survives and grows in refrigerated environments, and it thrives in unsanitary food production conditions, which is how food can become contaminated and lead to people getting sick.

“Listeria is a pathogen that has really grown up, along, or evolved right along with our advent of processed foods that are processed in cool, wet environments,” Marler said. Adding, he said, “Listeria is an environmental pathogen. It’s everywhere…The problem with it is that it’s incredibly deadly for humans.”

He explained that Listeria is unlike other bacteria that can cause foodborne illnesses, such as Salmonella, E. coli, and Campylobacter, because of how it lingers in refrigeration.

Marler used the example of people getting sick from Salmonella at outdoor barbecues. When potato salad, for instance, is left out in the heat for long periods of time without refrigeration, bacteria like Salmonella can grow.

With cases of Listeria, however, it grows really well in refrigerators too.

In 2011, there was a Listeria outbreak linked to cantaloupe, and Marler uses this case as an example for how the bacteria builds strength in refrigerators.

“A lot of the people who got sick and died in the cantaloupe case, they cut a cantaloupe, ate some of it, and then put the rest of it in the refrigerator, and then a couple of days later, they went and ate it,” Marler explained. “And it was that second time they went and ate it [that] killed them because it was in their refrigerator and the listeria was growing to a point where it overwhelmed their immune system and killed them.”

It’s difficult to get rid of Listeria

When it comes to the food processing plants that experience a Listeria outbreak, Marler says that these cool and wet environments are problematic for getting rid of the bacteria. This may explain why the bacteria lingers for so long.

In the case of the recent pasta Listeria outbreak, the timeline of illnesses reported go back to last year. It can take three to four weeks to determine if a sick person is a part of a Listeria outbreak.

The CDC also warns consumers that symptoms can begin as soon as the same day of consuming contaminated food or as late as 10 weeks after so symptoms need to be monitored.

“Listeria is very hard to eradicate once it gets into a plant. It’s really tough to get rid of,” Marler said. “And a lot of plants, if they have a listeria outbreak, sometimes they just knock the plant down because they can’t get it clean again.” Continuing, he added, “That’s the interesting thing about Listeria…[It] gets into these little cracks and crevices in these processing machines… and unless you are absolutely over the top cleaning it, it creates what are called biofilms.”

The Listeria will stick together to create biofilms that protect themselves from being cleaned. Marler says unless the machines are broken apart and all the cracks are meticulously cleaned, the bacteria will break off into a manufacturing food item every once in a while.

“That’s why you have these sporadic illnesses that don’t all happen at once,” he explained.

Republished with permission from Bill Marler and Marler Clark. Copyright (c) Marler Clark LLP, PS. All rights reserved.

Source: https://www.marlerblog.com/case-news/a-talk-about-listeria-with-the-mirror-us/