This was published 1 year ago
Three-state listeria outbreak traced to shredded chicken supplies
By Sean Parnell
A shredded chicken product sold in commercial quantities to restaurants, cafes and hospitals is the likely source of a listeria outbreak.
Queensland Chief Health Officer Dr John Gerrard said investigators had traced a strain of listeria from several patients to M&J Chickens’ easy serve breast fillet shredded chicken.
The product is being blamed for five listeria cases in Queensland – four acquired at Brisbane’s Mater Hospital, and a fifth possibly at Redcliffe Hospital – as well as three in NSW and one in Victoria.
“An official food recall is likely to follow but for now, any business or individual in possession of the product should stop using it,” Gerrard said in an alert on Monday afternoon.
“Queensland public hospitals are being instructed not to use this product.”
Gerrard said the source of two other clusters was still under investigation. Other cases of listeria may have yet to emerge due to the long incubation period.
The affected batch of chicken was sold in two-kilogram packs, under batch code A5497, and marked as chilled by 16/10/2023.