Consumers alerted to possible listeria in sandwiches

Tuesday 20 March 2007

The Food Standards Agency and Health Protection Agency (HPA) are alerting consumers to the fact that certain sandwiches may have been contaminated with listeria.

The sandwiches were supplied to establishments in London and the South East of England by Kent-based Anchor Catering.

The HPA is not currently aware of any reported cases of listeria infection as a result of people eating these sandwiches.

The vast majority of consumers will not be affected by this incident, but the FSA and the HPA are issuing precautionary advice to those consumers most vulnerable to the effects of listeria, which can be serious.

The sandwiches, which had use-by dates from 21 February to 14 March, were supplied to a range of establishments in Kent, Sussex, Essex, Middlesex, Surrey and Greater London (see links below) including schools, hospitals and local authorities before the problem became known. The majority of the sandwiches were labelled as Anchor products and some others were labelled as Pomegranate.

New text added 20 March 2007
The lists below include customers of Anchor Catering that have, to the best of our knowledge, been supplied with products implicated in this investigation (i.e. sandwiches with use-by dates of 21 February to 14 March). As our enquiries continue, we shall, as necessary, revise the lists.

Background
The problem was identified by Ashford Borough Council after a very small number of samples tested positive for listeria during routine sampling. The risk of listeria infection from eating these sandwiches is very low but, as a precautionary measure, the Agency and HPA are alerting consumers about the possible contamination. Vulnerable groups such as pregnant women, older people and those with lowered immunity are more at risk.

Health Protection Agency Regional Director for the South East Dr Graham Bickler, said: 'Most people will not suffer any ill effects but some groups of people are more at risk and will need prompt treatment if they develop the infection. This group includes pregnant women, the elderly, young babies and people whose immune systems are compromised – for example people with HIV or those undergoing chemotherapy.

'We are not aware of any infection at present but want people in those vulnerable groups to be aware that if they have eaten sandwiches from this company during the period in question and become ill within 2-3 months they must seek medical advice. We also want doctors and healthcare workers to be aware of the signs and symptoms of listeria infection so the correct treatment can be offered promptly.'

Food Standards Agency Chief Scientist Dr Andrew Wadge said: 'Listeria doesn't pose a threat to the vast majority of the population but it can be serious for some vulnerable groups such as pregnant women. We are working closely with the company and the local authority to discover how this happened.

'Although the company took prompt action to notify customers and withdraw the product, large numbers of sandwiches may have been consumed before the problem was detected.'

On discovery of contamination, Anchor Catering voluntarily suspended production and has informed the Agency that it contacted the establishments supplied with the sandwiches to withdraw them from sale. The FSA and local authority are working with Anchor Catering to identify the source of the contamination, and production at the factory remains suspended.