Precautionary advice on cooking frozen vegetables following Europe-wide listeriosis outbreak
The Food Standards Agency, Food Standards Scotland, Public Health England and Health Protection Scotland have issued a reminder that most frozen vegetables, including sweetcorn, need to be cooked before eating.
If the product is not labelled as “ready to eat”, the cooking instructions should always be followed before eating the food hot or cold. Please remember this even when making smoothies and dips.
This reminder is due to ongoing outbreak of listeriosis affecting five European countries including the United Kingdom with frozen sweetcorn.
Listeriosis is a rare but serious foodborne illness caused by the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes that can be more serious for those individuals who have weakened immune systems and also the elderly, pregnant women and infants. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) have today provided an update on the multi-country listeriosis outbreak.