Quaker Oats issues recall over Listeria concerns, just months after dealing with glyphosate poisoning allegations

Tuesday, May 31, 2016 by: Sarah Landers
Tags: Quaker Oats, listeria, recall

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(NaturalNews) Popular brand Quaker Oats announced earlier this month that there would be a voluntary U.S. recall of a small quantity of its Quaker Quinoa Granola Bars, due to the possible risk of Listeria contamination. The Quaker Oats Company, which is a unit of PepsiCo, said that although there have been no reported illnesses, it was issuing the recall "out of an abundance of caution," as reported by CNBC.

Quaker is reportedly working closely with the US Food and Drug Administration to investigate the issue, after an ingredient supplier has been found to have distributed sunflower kernels that may have been contaminated by the bacteria – which can either be completely harmless, or cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, the elderly and those with weakened immune systems, according to CNBC.

What is listeria?

According to About Listeria, exposure to the bacteria can lead to an infection that varies from mild to severe, and an illness called listeriosis. Those suffering with only mild side effects from listeriosis might suffer with the sudden onset of fever, chills, severe headache and vomiting. Most healthy adults who consume contaminated foods experience only mild to moderate symptoms. However, pregnant women are more susceptible, because they have a mildly impaired immune system. On rare occasions, severe forms of the illness can occur – including septic shock, meningitis and encephalitis.

Listeria exposure recalls

Quaker Oats isn't the only company to have instigated a voluntary recall of their products; there has also been a huge recall of frozen foods involving millions of packages of fruits and vegetables that have been shipped across the U.S., Canada and Mexico. The recall covers more than 400 products from CRF Frozen Foods sold under over 40 different brand names at major retailers like Costco, Target, Trader Joe's and Safeway, as reported by News Max.

Thus far, as a result of that particular outbreak, eight people have become ill after being exposed to a strain of Listeria that is genetically similar to that found in CRF vegetables, and two have actually died – though Listeria was not the primary cause of death.

The Quaker Oats Company

As noted by CNBC, the Quaker Oats Company manufactures hot cereals, pancake syrups, grain-based snacks and flavored rice products. However, the recall covers only Quaker Quinoa Granola Bars Chocolate Nut Medley and Quaker Quinoa Granola Bars Yogurt, Fruit and Nut Medley – and the company believes that the vast majority of potentially affected products have been prevented from reaching retail shelves.

Despite recent high hopes for the Quaker Oats Company regarding the clear labeling of GMO products, and moving away from glyphosate, the company is currently being sued for labeling their products as "100% natural," when they in fact contain the toxic herbicide glyphosate, as reported by Natural Blaze.

The company has been accused of being "misleading and deceptive" by a group of consumers from multiple states who have launched a class-action lawsuit. The complaint states that "glyphosate made its way into Quaker Oats, allegedly, not simply because it is used as an agricultural weed killer, but because it is sprayed on the oats as a drying agent shortly before they are harvested," according to Natural Blaze. The company is thought to have knowingly used oats contaminated with glyphosate in its Quaker Oats products.

Sources include:

NaturalBlaze.com

NewsMax.com

About-Listeria.com

CNBC.com

Science.NaturalNews.com