Prepackaged foods recalled by Fresh Ideation Food Group

Think twice — and check at least once — before you grab that premade sandwich to-go or other prepackaged foods this week at your favorite store: Manufacturer Fresh Ideation Food Group LLC has issued a voluntary recall for an array of foods because of possible listeria contamination.

Fresh Ideation said the recall, announced this week, was initiated after the company's "environmental samples" tested positive for the Listeria monocytogenes bacterium.

That bacterium can cause "serious and sometimes fatal infections" in children, frail or elderly people and those with weakened immune systems, according to the Baltimore-based manufacturer.

Even in healthy people, Listeria monocytogenes can lead to short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headaches, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an estimated 1,600 people get listeriosis — "a serious infection usually caused by eating food contaminated with the bacterium" — each year, and about 260 die.

Fresh Ideation said that no illnesses had been reported. 

The company said in a statement the affected items were sold Jan. 24-30 and had a fresh-through or sell-through date between Jan. 31 and Feb. 6. They have a "Fresh Creative Cuisine label and/or identifier on the bottom of the label with the Fresh Creative Cuisine name," according to the U.S. Food & Drug Administration.

The products subject to recall include prepackaged breakfasts, fruit plates, meal bowls, salads, snacks, yogurts, wraps, and a host of hoagies, finger sandwiches and pizza offerings. They were distributed up and down the East Coast and in the Northeast, including New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and the District of Columbia.

The company said the items are sold in retail locations, as well as vending machines, and during travel with "transportation providers." It was not immediately clear Tuesday where any of the items might be available for purchase on Long Island.

Fresh Ideation did not immediately respond to a phone inquiry Tuesday.

The company said consumers who have purchased any of the items on an extensive list of products are urged to contact the company at 855-969-3338, Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

By John Valenti

john.valenti@newsday.com

John Valenti, a reporter at Newsday since 1981, has been honored nationally by the Associated Press and Society of the Silurians for investigative, enterprise and breaking news reporting, as well as column writing, and is the author of “Swee'pea,” a book about former New York playground basketball star Lloyd Daniels. Valenti is featured in the Emmy Award-winning ESPN 30-for-30 film “Big Shot.”