Beef Jerky Recalled Over Listeria Concerns

Hundreds of pounds of beef jerky just got recalled due to the risk of illness to consumers. On Sept. 6, the Knoxville, Tennessee-based company Magnolia Provision Company recalled approximately 497 pounds of beef jerky products after it was found they may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, the bacterium that can lead to listeria infection.

Consumers were alerted to the recall by a notice posted on the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS)'s website. Per that notice, consumers should refrain from eating three specific ready-to-eat beef jerky items produced by the company on August 25, 2022. The recall specifically affects 2-oz. packages of "BEEF JERKY EXPERIENCE CHOP HOUSE STYLE PRIME RIB FLAVORED BEEF JERKY," 8-oz. packages of "BEEF JERKY EXPERIENCE CHOP HOUSE STYLE PRIME RIB FLAVORED BEEF JERKY," and 16-oz. packages of "BEEF JERKY EXPERIENCE CHOP HOUSE STYLE PRIME RIB FLAVORED BEEF JERKY." All of the recalled jerky products, which were shipped to retail locations nationwide, have "EXP 8/25/23" displayed on the back of the package and bear establishment number "EST. 8091" inside the USDA mark of inspection. You can view the labels here.

Magnolia Provision Company issued the recall, which follows similar recalls of beef jerky products issued earlier this year, after it "received confirmation from their third-party lab that a product contact surface sample returned as positive for Listeria monocytogenes," per the FSIS. Listeria monocytogenes is the bacterium responsible for listeria infection, a serious infection typically caused by consuming contaminated food. The bacterium typically affects young children, frail or elderly people, pregnant women, and others with weakened immune systems and can cause high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. In some cases, it can be fatal. The FSIS said there have been no illnesses reported to date in connection to the recalled products.

After discovering that the beef jerky products were possibly contaminated, Magnolia Provision Company contacted the FSIS and a recall was issued. Amid the recall and due to the health risk the products potentially pose, consumers, have been advised not to eat the recalled products. Consumers who have purchased these products should throw them away or return them to the place of purchase.