Outbreak Investigation of Listeria Monocytogenes: Queso Fresco and Cotija Cheese (February 2024)

Products:

Recalled products include all “Sell By” dates of cheese, yogurt, and sour cream (crema) sold under the brand names:

  • Tio Francisco
  • Don Francisco
  • Rizo Bros
  • Rio Grande
  • Food City
  • El Huache
  • La Ordena
  • San Carlos
  • Campesino
  • Santa Maria
  • Dos Ranchitos
  • Casa Cardenas
  • 365 Whole Foods Market

Product description, size, and UPCs are listed below. Additional information is also available in the firm’s recall notice. Images of Additional Products

Symptoms of Listeriosis (Listeria Infection)

Symptoms usually start within two weeks after eating food contaminated with Listeria but may start as early as the same day or as late as 10 weeks after. Mild symptoms may include a fever, muscle aches, nausea, tiredness, vomiting, and diarrhea. If the more severe form of listeriosis develops, symptoms may include headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, and convulsions.  

Stores Affected

  • Sold Nationwide

Status

Ongoing; updates will be provided as they become available.

Recommendations:

  • Do not eat, sell, or serve recalled brands of cheeses, sour creams (cremas), or yogurts manufactured by Rizo Lopez Foods, Inc.
  • Check your refrigerators and freezers for any recalled products and throw them away. If you froze a product without the original packaging and can’t tell if it is part of the recall, throw it away.
  • Consumers, restaurants, and retailers who purchased or received recalled products, including wholesale products, should carefully clean and sanitize any surfaces or containers that it touched. Follow FDA’s safe handling and cleaning advice to reduce the risk of cross-contamination. Listeria can survive in refrigerated temperatures and can easily spread to other foods and surfaces.  
  • If you have symptoms of listeriosis you should contact your health care provider to report your symptoms and receive care.

Recommendations for At-Risk Groups

  • Listeria is most likely to sicken pregnant people and newborns, adults aged 65 or older, and people with weakened immune systems. Other people can be infected with Listeria, but they rarely become seriously ill.
  • Pregnant people typically experience only fever, fatigue, and muscle aches. However, Listeria infection during pregnancy can lead to miscarriage, stillbirth, premature delivery, or life-threatening infection of the newborn.
  • Call your healthcare provider right away if you have symptoms of a Listeria infection.

Current Update

 February 5, 2024 

The FDA and CDC, in collaboration with state and local partners, are investigating illnesses in a multi-year, multistate outbreak of Listeria monocytogenes infections linked to queso fresco and cotija cheeses manufactured by Rizo Lopez Foods, Inc., of Modesto, California.

This outbreak includes cases dating back to 2014 and is currently ongoing. CDC investigated this outbreak in 2017 and 2021. Epidemiologic evidence in previous investigations identified queso fresco and other similar cheeses as a potential source of the outbreak, but there was not enough information to identify a specific brand.

A sample of Rizo Bros Aged Cotija tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes during sampling conducted by the Hawaii State Department of Health’s Food and Drug Branch in January 2024. In response to that finding, Rizo Lopez Foods, Inc. voluntarily recalled one batch of Rizo Bros Aged Cotija Mexican Grating Cheese (8oz) on January 11, 2024. CDC and FDA reopened the investigation in January 2024 after new illnesses were reported in December 2023 and whole genome sequencing (WGS) analysis of the cotija cheese sample showed that it is the same strain of Listeria that is causing illnesses in this outbreak.

According to CDC, of the 22 people interviewed, 16 (73%) reported eating queso fresco, cotija, or other similar cheeses. Among people who remembered specific brands, three people who got sick between 2014 and 2022 reported Don Francisco brand queso fresco or cotija. Don Francisco is one of the brands of recalled cheeses.

FDA initiated an on-site inspection at Rizo Lopez Foods, Inc.  FDA’s inspection is still ongoing; however, an environmental sample collected during that inspection tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes. WGS analysis of that sample showed that it is the same strain of Listeria that is causing illnesses in this outbreak.

In response to this investigation, Rizo Lopez Foods, Inc. has voluntarily recalled all sell by dates of its dairy products. The recalled products include cheese, yogurt, and sour cream sold under the brand names Tio Francisco, Don Francisco, Rizo Bros, Rio Grande, Food City, El Huache, La Ordena, San Carlos, Campesino, Santa Maria, Dos Ranchitos, Casa Cardenas, and 365 Whole Foods Market. The firm has temporarily ceased the production and distribution of these products. while their investigation is ongoing.

FDA’s investigation is ongoing and FDA will continue to update this advisory as information becomes available.

Recalled Products

Please see the firm’s press release for a list of recalled products. The following table is a courtesy copy from the FDA.Search:Export Excel

Product DescriptionBrandSizeUPCSell By Dates
Blanco SuaveTio Francisco14 oz7-27242-05355-6All dates through 03/23/2024
CotijaRizo Bros8 oz7-27242-00043-7All dates through 07/31/2024
CotijaTio Francisco12 oz7-27242-12017-3All dates through 07/31/2024
CotijaTio Francisco14 oz7-27242-00517-3All dates through 7/31/2024
CotijaFood City~16 oz All dates through 07/31/2024
CotijaTio Francisco, San CarlosAvailable to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 07/31/2024
Cotija (Grated)Rizo Bros7 oz7-27242-14022-5All dates through 07/31/2024
Cotija (Grated)Tio Francisco, Casa Cardenas9 oz7-27242-00022-2 & 8-11371-27109-4All dates through 06/01/2024
Cotija (Grated)Tio Francisco20 oz7-27242-00056-7All dates through 5/2/2024
Cotija EnchiladoTio Francisco14 oz7-27242-00535-7All dates through 07/31/2024
Cotija EnchiladoFood City, Casa Cardenas~16 oz All dates through 07/31/2024
Cotija EnchiladoTio FranciscoAvailable to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 07/31/2024
Cotija RalladoTio Francisco12 oz7-27242-00021-5All dates through 7/31/2024
Cotija RalladoTio FranciscoAvailable to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 07/31/2024
Crema CentroamericanaTio Francisco16 oz7-27242-00440-4All dates through 06/01/2024
Crema CentroamericanaTio Francisco, CampesinoAvailable to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 06/01/2024
Crema La DeliciosaTio FranciscoAvailable to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 04/22/2024
Crema La SupremaTio FranciscoAvailable to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 04/22/2024
Crema LatinaTio Francisco16 oz7-27242-35445-5All dates through 6/1/2024
Crema LatinaTio FranciscoAvailable to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 06/01/2024
Crema MenonitaCampesinoAvailable to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 06/01/2024
Crema MexicanaTio Francisco, Food City, Santa Maria16 oz7-27242-00408-4, 7-27242-22410-9, 7-27242-35403-5All dates through 06/01/2024
Crema MexicanaTio Francisco, CampesinoAvailable to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 06/01/2024
Crema MexicanaSan CarlosAvailable to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 06/01/2024
Crema MexicanaTio Francisco32 oz7-27242-32403-8All dates through 06/01/2024
Crema NortenaTio FranciscoAvailable to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 06/01/2024
Crema Santa Isabel Centroamericana Available to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 04/22/2024
Crema Santa Isabel Latina Available to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 04/22/2024
Crema Santa Isabel Mexicana Available to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 04/22/2024
FrescoTio Francisco, San CarlosAvailable to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 04/02/2024
Fresco (Michoacano)Tio Francisco, El Huache, La OrdenaAvailable to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 04/02/2024
OaxacaRizo Bros8 oz7-27242-00334-6All dates through 5/2/2024
OaxacaTio Francisco12 oz7-27242-12332-7All dates through 05/02/2024
OaxacaTio Francisco14 oz7-27242-00532-6All dates through 05/02/2024
OaxacaFood City~16 oz All dates through 05/02/2024
OaxacaTio Francisco, San CarlosAvailable to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 05/02/2024
Oaxaca (shred)Tio FranciscoAvailable to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 05/02/2024
PanelaTio Francisco14 oz7-27242-00550-0All dates through 3/23/2024
PanelaFood City~16 oz All dates through 3/23/2024
PanelaTio Francisco, San Carlos, Dos Ranchitos, La Ordena, CampesinoAvailable to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 03/23/2024
Panela BarraTio FranciscoAvailable to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 04/02/2024
Queso CremaFood City~16 oz All dates through 3/23/2024
Queso CremaSan CarlosAvailable to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 03/23/2024
Queso FrescoRizo Bros8 oz7-27242-00159-5All dates through 04/02/2024
Queso FrescoDon Francisco10 oz7-27242-00178-6All dates through 4/2/2024
Queso FrescoTio Francisco12 oz7-27242-12552-9All dates through 03/23/2024
Queso FrescoTio Francisco, Rio Grande14 oz7-27242-00552-4, 8-12324-03090-4, 8-12324-03091-1 & 8-12324-03089-8All dates through 03/23/2024
Queso FrescoFood City~16 oz All dates through 3/23/2024
Queso FrescoTio Francisco, Campesino, San Carlos, Santa Maria, Dos RanchitosAvailable to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 04/02/2024
Queso Para FreirTio Francisco~16 oz All dates through 04/17/2024
Queso Para FreirTio FranciscoAvailable to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 04/17/2024
Queso SecoTio Francisco14 oz7-27242-00548-8All dates through 07/31/2024
RequesonTio Francisco14 oz7-27242-00390-6All dates through 04/02/2024
RequesonTio Francisco15 oz7-27242-00392-6All dates through 4/2/2024
RequesonTio FranciscoAvailable to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 04/02/2024
Ricotta Part Skim365 Whole Foods Market15 oz9-94824-63052All dates through 04/02/2024
Ricotta Whole Milk365 Whole Foods Market15 oz9-94824-96245All dates through 4/2/2024
Yogurt (Plain, Strawberry, Peach & Mango)Tio FranciscoAvailable to consumers at retail deli counters in various sizes All dates through 04/17/2024

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