Hard-Boiled Eggs Recalled In PA Over Listeria Fears

PENNSYLVANIA — The CDC has issued a warning over fears that hard-boiled eggs distributed to Pennsylvania may be linked to a deadly listeria outbreak.

The potentially tainted eggs, which were shipped to retailers and food service operators in five states including Pennsylvania, were produced at the Almark Foods Gainesville, Georgia facility.

The outbreak has so far sickened seven people. Four of those cases required hospitalization and one person has died, the CDC said.

The eggs, which were peeled, hard-boiled, and packaged in plastic pails of various sizes, should not be used to make any ready-to-eat foods, such as egg salad or deviled eggs, the CDC said.

A recall has not been issued on the product but the CDC is calling on retailers and food service operators to check their bulk hard-boiled eggs and discard any produced at the facility in Georgia.

"Consumers will not be able to tell if products they’ve purchased from stores contain these eggs, so it is important that people at higher risk for listeria infections follow the advice listed below," the CDC said in its warning.

Food service operators who have the eggs should not use them, and should wash and sanitize any surfaces that may have come in contact with the eggs or the packaging.

People at higher risk for listeria infection, such as pregnant women, newborns, seniors, and people with weakened immune systems, should throw away any store-bought hard-boiled eggs or products containing hard-boiled eggs, such as egg salad. They are also advised to wash and sanitize drawers or shelves in refrigerators and freezers where the products were stored.

"This advice does not include eggs hard-boiled at home or homemade products made with those eggs, such as egg salad or deviled eggs," the CDC said.

If you have these products at home, don’t eat them.

"Throw them away, regardless of where you bought them or the use-by date," the CDC said.