Listeria outbreak tied to soft cheese kills one, sickens seven; more products may be affected
The outbreak started on New York's Long Island; pregnant women are at heightened risk
The Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned consumers Friday and over the weekend not to eat, sell or serve soft requeson and ricotta-style cheeses manufactured by Clover Hill Dairy of Mechanicsville, Maryland, after an investigation tied the products to a multi-year, multi-state listeria monocytogenes outbreak that has killed one person and hospitalized seven.
Eight people across Maryland, New York and Virginia have been sickened, with confirmed illness dates ranging from March 6, 2023, through May 9, 2026. Of the seven people interviewed by CDC investigators, five reported eating cheese, and two reported eating Clover Hill Dairy requeson specifically.
The outbreak traces back to two related cases from a single family in Suffolk County, New York, reported May 13 by the Suffolk County Health Department to New York state agriculture officials.
State inspectors tested five cheese samples from the family’s retailer and found listeria in a repacked requeson sample; whole-genome sequencing confirmed the strain matched the cases.
On May 27, investigators traced the cheese to Clover Hill Dairy, and a sealed 18-pound bucket from the manufacturer also tested positive. Clover Hill issued a voluntary recall June 3, and the Maryland Department of Health has suspended the dairy’s operating license.
Other products may be affected
The FDA cautioned that the agency is “in the early stages of this investigation, additional products may be impacted, and further testing by FDA and state partners is underway.”
Some Clover Hill products are distributed at farmers markets and through third-party distributors, may be relabeled under different brand names, and can be identified by the Clover Hill Dairy manufacturer permit number 24-128 on the package.
Pregnant women, adults 65 and older, and people with weakened immune systems are at highest risk and should avoid all queso fresco-style cheeses pending the outcome of the investigation.
Separately, a smaller recall of one-pound clamshell-pack requeson by Nelson & Isa Lacteos LLC was added to the FDA’s recall roster over the weekend on the same contamination concern, and Target’s Up & Up baby wipes were recalled in fragrance-free and fresh-cucumber-scented varieties for potential bacterial contamination.