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Smoked salmon sold at Sam’s Club stores in 42 states, including Hawaii, is being recalled because of concerns about potential listeria contamination.
The product’s maker, Miami-based Multiexport Foods, issued the voluntary recall after a routine lab test on an undistributed shipment of the fish found the listeria monocytogenes bacteria, a Wal-Mart Stores Inc. news release said Friday.
No illnesses have been linked to the recall, which is "being issued with an overabundance of caution," said Walmart, parent company of Sam’s Club.
The listeria bacteria can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems.
The recall includes 12-ounce twin packs, which have two 6-ounce vacuum-sealed packages in a cardboard sleeve, and 1.25-pound packs of the salmon sold under the Paramount Preserve brand. Affected products were distributed to Sam’s Club stores between Nov. 12 and Dec. 21.
"We didn’t see anything from the USDA, so it isn’t a regulatory recall," said Peter Oshiro, program manager for the state Department of Health Sanitation Branch. "It’s just a quality-control issue at the manufacturer where they felt it was better to be safe than sorry. It’s not really a concern for us."
Walmart said consumers can return the salmon to retailers for a full refund.
The UPC code for the twin pack is 6 88264 86705 0; the code for the 1.25-pound pack is 6 88264 86664 0.