000249 School-Bound Chicken Recalled

Washington - Some 114,000 pounds of chicken nuggets and patties that were produced for schools in six states have been recalled because they may be contaminated with deadly bacteria, the government said.

The meat was produced Jan. 25 at a Gold Kist Inc. plant in Boaz, Ala., and sent to schools in Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Texas, Colorado and Ohio.

The Agriculture Department began investigating the plant after officials in Ohio found listeria monocytogenes in an open package of chicken nuggets. USDA said it had received no reports of illnesses; none of the nuggets and patties are believed to have been eaten.

On Wednesday, a test ordered by Ohio officials confirmed the presence of listeria in a closed package.

“Gold Kist's actions should reassure parents, school administrators and students,” said Thomas Billy, administrator of USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service.

Listeria is a common pathogenic bacteria found in the environment. It is killed in the cooking process if the chicken is prepared at the proper temperature.

Food contaminated by listeria can cause listerosis, an uncommon but potentially fatal disease. Healthy people rarely contract the disease, with symptoms like high fever, severe headache, neck stiffness and nausea.

It can be deadly to the elderly or young children and can cause stillbirths and miscarriages in pregnant women, even if they experience no symptoms.

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