Sunflower seeds are a satisfying snack, and especially good to eat during a long drive. They’re also a common ingredient in cereals, granola, granola bars, protein bars, cookies, and you can even buy sunflower seed butter. We didn’t realize quite how popular they are until a company called SunOpta found Listeria monocytogenes contamination after routine testing of their bulk sunflower seeds. Since then, companies from supermarkets to sporting goods stores have been recalling their products that contain sunflower seeds, and those little seeds are everywhere.
With that, maybe it’s a good idea to just…skip eating anything with sunflower seeds in it for a while. The recall includes hundreds of items under dozens of brands. Food Safety News notes that some of the recall notices aren’t even being sent the Food and Drug Administration, so consider checking the labels on any snacks that you eat for sunflower seeds, then checking the company website or even calling them to find out if the product has been recalled.
Avoiding Listeria illness is especially important for children, elderly people, pregnant women, and people with compromised immune systems, since they’re more likely to develop serious complications, which include septicemia, meningitis, stillbirth, and miscarriage.
Symptoms include fever, muscle aches, and diarrhea or other gastrointestinal problems. Other symptoms can include fatigue, headache, stiff neck, confusion, or seizures if the illness worsens. People who are healthy may not have any symptoms at all.
by Laura Northrup via Consumerist
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