Frozen meatballs sold in SC could make you sick, and the symptoms are a lot like flu

Frozen meatballs sold at Sam’s in South Carolina and other states are being recalled because they may be tainted with listeria.

The ready-to-eat meatballs are sold under the name Member’s Mark Casa Di Bertacchi Italian Style Meatballs in 6-pound bags. They have a best if used by date of Dec. 17, 2018, and a lot code of 15507351 on the packaging, according to a news release Wednesday from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service.

They were made by Rich Products Corp. of Vineland, N.J., on Dec. 17, 2017.

The products subject to recall bear establishment number “EST. 5336” inside the USDA mark of inspection. In addition to stores in South Carolina, these items were shipped to distributors in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.

Listeria monocytogenes most affects pregnant women, newborns, the elderly and those with weakened immune systems, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Healthy individuals may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea, but listeria infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women.

The symptoms may appear to be flu. Those in high-risk categories who experience flulike symptoms within two months of eating contaminated food should seek medical care, according to the USDA news release.

The CDC reports that symptoms typically start 1 to 4 weeks after eating contaminated food, but symptoms may start the same day as exposure or up to 70 days later.

Consumers should throw away the product or return it to the store where it was purchased, the USDA says.

Those with questions may contact Rich Products at 1-800-356-7094.

This story was originally published January 25, 2018 at 8:59 AM with the headline "Frozen meatballs sold in SC could make you sick, and the symptoms are a lot like flu."