Top supermarket chain reports risk of listeria in hummus
Customers who bought affected chickpea dish offered refund; Shufersal stresses no danger posed by other products
Israel’s largest supermarket chain Shufersal said Tuesday that some of the hummus sold under its store brand may be infected with the listeria bacteria.
Shufersal said that it was informed by the Salatei Shamir (Shamir Salads) company, which manufactures the chickpea spread for the supermarket, that some containers that were sold to the public were possibly infected.
The apologetic supermarket chain said the problematic packages were one-kilogram tubs with an expiration date of January 5, 2017. Customers were warned not to eat that product, but Shufersal stressed that there is no problem with any of their other items.
Those who have purchased the infected hummus will receive a full refund from the company. Anyone with questions should call 1-800-68-68-68 or contact the company through their website.
Shufersal said it has given all the details to the Health Ministry and explained that the bacteria was not found in testing when the hummus left the factory but only later when a supplier tested the shelf life of the product as an extra layer of quality control.
Listeria can cause serious illness; small children, pregnant women, the elderly or people with compromised immune systems are particularly vulnerable.
During the summer there was a spate of bacteria-infected foods, including salmonella contamination in tahina products supplied by the Prince Tahina company to Salatei Shamir. As a result, some 200 tons of Prince Tahina’s paste were destroyed.
