Ice Cream Recall as Warning Issued That Eating Product Could Be Fatal

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued a recall on Wilcox brand ice cream, yogurt, and ice cream bars after it discovered a potentially fatal organism in its Mint Chocolate Chip flavor.

Listeria is a bacteria often found in contaminated foods and can cause an infection called listeriosis that can lead to death for young children, elderly people or other groups with weakened immune systems. Other symptoms include high fever, intense headaches, sickness and diarrhea while infected pregnant women can have miscarriages and stillbirths.

An estimated 1,600 people get listeriosis each year in the United States, with about 260 dying from the illness.

Potentially affected products were shipped to retail stores located in Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts and New York, the FDA confirmed. Newsweek reached out to the FDA for comment

A spokesperson for Wilcox Ice Cream told Newsweek: "Consumer safety and consumer confidence in our product is of the utmost importance to us. There have been no reported illnesses from this. We are working with the Vermont Department of Agriculture and the FDA very closely to determine the root cause of the bacteria. We have been praised by those agencies for our in-depth and prompt response to this situation.

"Wilcox Ice Cream has been manufacturing ice cream for six generations over 95 years. We have never had a recall before. Our plant, equipment, surfaces, environment and drains have all tested negative for Listeria. That means that our cleaning and sanitation steps are working. All products are being removed from our 4000-square-foot freezer today.

"The Wilcox Family and Wilcox team remains extremely committed to all of our valued customers. We never want to go through this again. We are working tirelessly and efficiently to get our plant back into production."

Wilcox Ice Cream told customers in a statement they could receive credit compensation by sending the company a picture showing the quantity of the product and the store where it was bought from, along with their contact details.

On its website, the FDA says that "food producers recall their products from the marketplace when the products are mislabeled or when the food may present a health hazard to consumers because the food is contaminated or has caused a foodborne illness outbreak."

It's the second time this year that an outbreak of listeria has led to a recall of frozen treats in the United States.

In August, FDA officials launched an investigation into Real Kosher brand Soft Serve On The Go over the same organism that was found in the Wilcox product.

One person in New York and another in Pennsylvania were hospitalized after consuming the infected product, the FDA confirmed at the time.

The company said: "Our highest priority is the safety and well-being of our customers, which is why we have made the decision to recall all Soft Serve on the Go Cups."

Update 11/22/23, 11:11 a.m. ET: This article was updated with a statement from Wilcox Ice Cream.