Freshouse II, LLC of Salisbury, NC, a supplier of Wegmans Food Markets,   has since Sunday been recalling specific production lots, brands and weights of Valencia Oranges, Lemons, Limes, Organic Limes, and Red B Potatoes because they have the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes.

And Wegmans, a 103-store supermarket chain with stores in New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia, Maryland, Massachusetts, and North Carolina is recalling Valencia Oranges, bagged and bulk lemons and in-store produced seafood and restaurant food items.

Freshouse II produce was sold in Wegmans stores in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina, Maryland, and Brooklyn and Harrison, NY. Wegmans has placed automated phone calls to alert customers who purchased these products using Shoppers Club. The affected produce items, sold at Wegmans between July 31 and Aug. 7, include:

• Wegmans 4lb Bag Valencia Oranges – UPC: 7789052363
• Wegmans 2lb Bag Lemons – UPC: 7789015917
• Wegmans bulk lemons – UPC: 4033

Both the Freshouse II and Wegmans recalls are due to possible contamination with Listeria monocytogenes, an organism that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Others may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain, and diarrhea Listeria infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women.

The recalls were initiated after Freshouse II ‘s routine internal testing identified Listeria monocytogenes on a piece of equipment in a  packing facility.   The company ceased the production and distribution of the product that was packed on the equipment in question and are taking corrective actions and continually evaluating our cleaning and sanitation regimes.

No illnesses are yet associated with any of the recalled items.

Consumers can identify recalled retail products by looking for the brand, UPC number, and, if available the trace number printed on the tag or clip attached to the opening end of the bag. The recalled products were shipped directly to retailer distribution centers in North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Virginia and to wholesalers in Maryland and North Carolina (see table below).

Consumers who have a recalled item listed above in their possession should not consume it and should destroy the product in a way so that it may not be consumed by others or return it to the place of purchase for a refund. Consumers with questions may contact Freshouse II, LLC at 631-369-7150, Monday through Friday: 8:00 am to 5:00 pm. Eastern Time. 

Freshouse II, LLC has notified its retail and wholesale customers who received the recalled product directly from the company and is requesting that these customers remove the recalled product from commerce. We are also asking our direct customers to notify their customers of this recall. The company is issuing this press release and keeping the U.S. Food & Drug Administration informed of its recall process to assure that consumers are properly alerted.

“We voluntarily issued this recall out of an abundance of caution with the steadfast intent to minimize even the slightest risk to public health,” said Freshouse II, President Jamey Friedman,  “We take food safety and this recall seriously. Freshouse is committed to providing consumers with fresh, nutritious, safe products.”