Schools Director Warns Parents of Possible Listeria Contamination After Food Vendor Recall

In a statemen by Dr. Shane Johnston, Jefferson County Director of Schools, November 25, 2019 – “One of the food vendors for Jefferson County Schools notified the Food Services Department that there was a recall for a base that is used to make soups and to flavor vegetables. This notification was received shortly after 11:00 AM November 25, 2019 and schools were immediately notified.

Schools promptly replaced effected items on the serving lines with other meal choices and students were served. Some students had already eaten today’s meal prior to our knowledge of the recall, and this is the same base that was used in some of the meals served last week including the Thanksgiving meal last Thursday.

The recall letter from the vendor provided information about the product stating that it “might be contaminated with Listeria”. The letter additionally listed Listeria is an organism leading to sickness that can include symptoms such as fever, high fever, severe headache, nausea, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. This will be tricky over the next couple of weeks as our county has already experienced a higher than normal outbreak of viruses and flu-like symptoms that are similar to the symptoms associated with Listeria.

The Jefferson County Health Department has been advised of this information as well. If your child experiences any of these symptoms, please contact your local medical provider or pediatrician.

Parents and guests that dined with us last week should be aware of these symptoms as well. Expectant mothers that have eaten in a Jefferson County School cafeteria last week or today are encouraged to contact your physician to make them aware of this possibility.

For more information or if you have questions, please feel free to contact your child’s school nurse. “