Romaine Lettuce Recall Expands To Include Dole
The Romaine lettuce recall we alerted you to earlier this month has expanded to include an additional brand name. Dole Organic Romaine Hearts have been added to the earlier recall efforts involving Tanimura & Antle product. The concern with the Dole Organic Romaine Hearts is the same as it was for the lettuce product from Tanimura & Antle: E. coli. The Dole product includes packages shipped to and sold in Minnesota.
The Dole recall is strictly voluntary at this point - out of caution. No illnesses have been reported from the recalled lettuce, but a sample instigated the action. According to news sources:
"[There was] an isolated instance in which a package of Dole Organic Romaine Hearts – 3pk yielded a positive result for pathogenic non-O157 E.coli STEC in a routine sample collected at a retail store by the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development. There is no indication at this time that this positive result is related to any illnesses nor consumer complaints and it is not associated with the strains connected to the ongoing outbreaks currently under regulatory investigation."
This particular recall doesn't affect all Dole Romaine product. Specifically, it only includes Dole Organic Romaine Hearts 3-packs, with Harvested-On dates of 10-23-20 and 10-26-20, and Wild Harvest Organic Romaine Hearts, with Harvested-On dates of 10-23-20 and 10-26-20. Here are the affected UPC codes:
- Dole Organic Romaine Hearts: UPC 0-71430-90061-1
- Wild Harvest Organic Romaine Hearts: UPC 7-11535-50201-2
According to details released by the United States Food and Drug Administration, the belief is that any affected packages would already be in the hands of consumers - and not necessarily left on store shelves. The lettuce was "harvested and packaged nearly four weeks ago and should no longer be in commerce".
Additional identification of the recalled lettuce is available by seeking out the "Harvested On" sticker and the UPC Code. The "Harvested On" sticker is "...located on the upper right corner of each bag and the UPC code is located on the bottom right corner of the back of each bag". The recalled lettuce packages were distributed in Arizona, Hawaii, Iowa, Illionois, Indiana, Kansas, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, Virginia, and Minnesota.