Deadly Listeria Outbreak Linked To Cheese Sold At MD Whole Foods

MARYLAND — Federal health officials are warning Maryland residents to check their refrigerators for several cheese products linked to a recent listeria outbreak, including one sold at Whole Foods Market locations throughout the state.

California-based Rizo-López Foods recalled dozens of cheese and yogurt products on Tuesday due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Listeria is an organism that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and those with weakened immune systems.

The recalled products — which were sold in stores nationwide — were sold under the brand names Tio Francisco, Don Francisco, Rizo Bros, Rio Grande, Food City, El Huache, La Ordena, San Carlos, Campesino, Santa Maria, Dos Ranchitos, Casa Cardenas, and 365 by Whole Foods Market, according to officials.

Affected 365 by Whole Foods Market products include whole and part-skim ricotta cheeses. A spokesperson with Whole Foods confirmed to Patch the ricotta was shipped to locations nationwide.

As of Feb. 6, a total of 26 people in 11 states have been infected with this outbreak strain of Listeria between June 15, 2014, and Dec. 10, 2023, officials said.

Of 26 people reported sick, 23 have been hospitalized and two deaths have been reported, according to officials.

So far, no illnesses have been reported in Maryland.

The CDC investigated this outbreak in 2017 and 2021 when epidemiological evidence in previous investigations identified queso fresco and other similar cheeses as a potential source of the outbreak. However, at the time, there was not enough information to identify a specific brand.

Officials reopened the investigation in January after new illnesses were reported in December and the outbreak strain was found in a cheese sample from Rizo-López Foods, according to officials.

The FDA inspected the Rizo-López Foods facility and found the outbreak strain of Listeria on a container where cheeses are kept before they are packaged, according to officials.

If infected with Listeria, healthy people may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain, and diarrhea, officials said. The infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women.

The true number of sick people in this outbreak is likely higher than the number reported as not all people who become sick are tested, and the outbreak may not be limited to the states with known illnesses, officials noted.

Consumers should check their refrigerators and freezers for any of the products listed here and throw them away, according to the FDA.

Affected 365 by Whole Foods Market products were sold at the following Maryland locations:

• 316 Kentlands Blvd., Gaithersburg
• 11355 Woodglen Dr., Rockville
• 5269 River Rd., Bethesda
• 4420 Willard Ave., Chevy Chase
• 833 Wayne Ave., Silver Spring
• 10275 Little Patuxent Pkwy., Columbia
• 6621-B Baltimore Ave., Riverdale
• 1330 Smith Ave., Baltimore
• 300 Towson Row, Towson
• 711 S Central Ave., Baltimore
• 200 Harker Pl. Ste 100, Annapolis