Listeria outbreak leaves 4 dead, 19 hospitalized from frozen meals sold at Trader Joes and Walmart

An outbreak of Listeria has left four dead and 19 hospitalized, resulting in a recall of frozen meals sold at popular grocery stores.

Trader Joe’s is yanking “Trader Joe’s cajun style blackened chicken breast fettuccine alfredo” with “best if used by dates” of Sept. 20, 24 and 27. Meanwhile, Walmart is trashing 12-ounce trays of  “Marketside linguine with beef meatballs and marinara sauce” with “best if used by” dates of Sep. 22, 24, 25, 29, 30 and Oct. 1. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued the multi-state recall amid fears that the pasta in these ready-to-eat meals may be contaminated.

The outbreak is said to cover 15 states, and consumers who have purchased these products are urged to throw them away or return them to the store to be disposed of.

Affected states and number of cases:

California: 2 cases

Florida: 1 case

Illinois: 1 case

Indiana: 1 case

Louisiana: 2 cases

Michigan: 2 cases

Minnesota: 1 case

Missouri: 1 case

Nevada: 1 case

North Carolina: 1 case

Ohio: 1 case

South Carolina: 1 case

Texas: 3 cases

Utah: 1 case

Virginia: 1 case

While nobody should consume contaminated food, Listeria “is particularly harmful to people aged 65 and older, as well as women who are pregnant or people with weakened immune systems, because listeria can spread from their gut to other parts of the body – causing a severe condition known as invasive listeriosis,” according to Fox Business.

Those in the vulnerable cohort should immediately contact a healthcare provider if they experience symptoms such as “headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, and convulsions – as well as fever, muscle aches, and tiredness.” Pregnant women experiencing sudden or unexplained muscle aches, fatigue and fever should also contact a physician, as even a mild case can cause “loss of pregnancy or premature birth, as well as serious illness or death in newborns.”

Symptom onset can occur “within two weeks of eating contaminated food but can start as early as the same day, or as late as 10 weeks after.”

X users responded to the widespread outbreak:

Go home and make real food. It’s a new thing, I know, but it’s worth it.

— David Carter (@MrDavidCarter) September 29, 2025

Listeria??? Easy..Cancel & pull all stock. Burn it. Stop eating shit foods. Disgusting.

— Mr_Gent (@cfloatthegent) September 29, 2025

Wanna bet on how many illegal immigrants work at the processing facility?

— First Name (@FirstName5000) September 29, 2025

Walmart gave gas masks to protestors. I refuse to shop there.

Good thing.

— OldBenzSam (@SkyWatcher120) September 29, 2025

Frozen meals from Walmart! Lookout!

— WILL (@WJWII33) September 29, 2025

Where were they grown, made and packaged.?

— Kathy Wills (@thecatsblack) September 29, 2025

Writer/Columnist

Sierra Marlee is a millennial whose hunger for the truth in a world of fake news has led her to BizPac Review.

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