Public Health Alert Issued for This Popular Trader Joe’s Salad

If you regularly shop at Trader Joe’s, you might want to check your fridge when you get home. The FSIS is issuing an alert for the grocery store’s pre-made “Broccoli Slaw & Kale Salad with White Chicken Meat” for potential listeria contamination.

It’s not an official recall, however, because the salad is technically past its “use by” date. If your household is anything like mine, however, those dates are often taken with a grain of salt. You might still have a package with this “use by” date in your fridge (maybe you forgot about it, or you haven’t gotten around to eating it yet), so it’s important to check when you get home.

If you live in Arizona, California, Nevada, or Utah, you should take a quick look in your fridge for the following items, as cited from the USDA:

The ready-to-eat (RTE) broccoli slaw and kale salads with chicken meat items were produced from Oct. 3, 2017 through Oct. 6, 2017.

9.3-oz. plastic container with “TRADER JOE’S Broccoli Slaw & Kale Salad with White Chicken Meat” with use by dates of: 10/10/2017, 10/11/2017, 10/12/2017 and 10/13/2017 and lot codes of: 70327610, 70427710, 70527810 and 70627910, respectively.

The products bear establishment number “EST. P-17156” inside the USDA mark of inspection if you want to triple check.

Listeria can lead to a variety of of symptoms, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), including high fever, diarrhea, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, and abdominal pain. The symptoms can occur as early as a few days after eating contaminated food or up to a few weeks later.

So check your fridge once you return home, but there’s no need to worry about items currently at the store — those have all been taken care of for you.