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Costco is recalling smoked salmon products due to possible listeria contamination.

Listeria is a bacteria that contaminates food and can cause listeriosis, the third leading cause of death from foodborne illness in the US. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Controls and Prevention, Listeria can spread in food processing facilities.

Costco said certain packages of its Kirkland Signature Smoked Salmon purchased between Oct. 9 and Oct. 13 are affected by the recall, according to an Oct. 22 letter to customers.

Packages with the lot number 8512801270 – top right of the pre-package – may not be consumed. Customers can return packages to Costco for a full refund.

The recall was initiated by the store’s smoked salmon supplier, Acme Smoked Fish Corp., which identified potential listeria bacteria in its product. No illnesses have been reported.

Costco’s recall comes at a time of increased attention to foodborne illness.

In July, more than 7.2 million pounds of Boar’s Head liverwurst and other processed meats were recalled after a deadly outbreak of listeria. At least 10 deaths and 59 hospitalizations have been reported in 19 states due to the listeria outbreak, according to the CDC.

The century-old meat company has since halted sales of liverwurst and closed the Virginia plant at the center of the outbreak. Boar’s Head has come under scrutiny from lawmakers after reports in early 2022 indicated the possibility of listeria contamination at a company’s food processing plant.

In addition to listeria, there has also been an outbreak of E. coli, associated with Quarter Pounders, at McDonald’s stores in several McDonald’s states. According to the CDC and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 75 illnesses have been reported as a result of the E. coli outbreak, with 22 hospitalizations and at least one death in 13 states.

According to the FDA, which tracks public announcements, there have been several recalls in October, including Costco’s salmon products due to possible listeria contamination. While the recalls follow the Boar’s Head listeria outbreak and the McDonald’s E. coli outbreak, experts told CNN that an increase in recalls due to possible contamination is not necessarily a cause for concern.

Francisco Diez-Gonzalez, director of the Center for Food Safety at the University of Georgia, told CNN it is critical to distinguish between a recall and an actual listeria outbreak.

On October 24, the FDA announced a recall of chicken taco kits produced by Sprouts Farmers Markets due to possible listeria contamination. According to a press release, the items were previously recalled by the manufacturer on October 11. According to the FDA, an expanded recall was issued on October 22 due to possible listeria contamination for waffle and pancake products produced by Treehouse Foods. The food processing company recalled dozens of frozen waffle products sold at Target, Walmart, Publix and other stores on Oct. 18 due to possible listeria contamination, according to a news release.

Earlier in October, nearly 12 million pounds of ready-to-eat meat and poultry were recalled by manufacturer BrucePac due to possible listeria contamination, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The massive recall affected dozens of frozen and ready-to-eat chicken products in stores and schools across the country.

There has been an increase in recalls due to possible concerns about listeria, but that does not mean there is a new increase in listeria outbreaks, Diez-Gonzalez said. Outbreaks indicate that people have become ill, while recalls occur due to the detection of possible contamination.

Zero cases of illness have been reported as a result of the listeria-related recalls in October, and recalling the products in time can help prevent illnesses, Diez-Gonzalez said.

According to the CDC, a foodborne illness is classified as when two or more people become sick from the same contaminated product. According to the CDC, there has been one listeria outbreak in 2024, the Boar’s Head outbreak.

According to the FDA’s recall dashboard, there have been 1,905 food or cosmetic product recalls in 2024, up from 1,563 in 2023. Still, 2024 recalls are generally at or below pre-pandemic levels. For example, in 2014, ten years earlier, there were 2,549 food or cosmetic product recalls.

According to an FDA spokesperson, the number of food-related recalls in 2024 is generally consistent with previous years.

“There may be a perception that the number of recalls has increased, especially if one recall includes a large number of affected products, but the number of food-related recalls in (2024) is generally consistent with recent years,” the spokesperson said.

In fact, Diez-Gonzalez said the recent increase in recalls could be evidence of increased precautions and monitoring by companies.

“There are more companies testing,” Diez-Gonzalez said. “It’s not that the number of contaminated products is really increasing, but the more we have those systems in place, the more often you’ll find it, and the more you’ll remember.”

Additionally, Diez-Gonzalez said the food system in the U.S. is complicated, and one factor that has contributed to the scale of the recalls has been the consolidation of the food supply, with a processing company like BrucePac having distribution to multiple states across the country. .

Diez-Gonzalez also said that over the past two decades there has been an increasing focus on microbiological testing and implementing surveillance processes to detect potential cases of listeria.

“As a result of improved surveillance and testing, the frequency of product withdrawals has increased,” he said.

The CDC estimates that about 1,600 people become infected with listeria each year, resulting in about 260 deaths. Deli meats may be particularly susceptible to listeria outbreaks, according to the CDC, and the bacteria can spread across surface counters.

Recalls often do not bode well for companies’ reputations, and in an ideal scenario they would identify contaminated products before they hit the market, Diez-Gonzalez said.

Still, the detection of potential listeria contamination doesn’t necessarily mean an outbreak will occur, and the fact that these items were identified and recalled could bode well for disease prevention, Diez-Gonzalez said.

Consumers with questions about food safety can call the USDA at 888-674-6854.