Organic carrots have been recalled at Trader Joe’s, Target, Whole Foods, Walmart, and other stores after a deadly E. coli outbreak.
According to the CDC Outbreak Investigation, at least 39 people were infected with E. coli O121 in 18 states since September 2024, including one person who died in California. The true number of illnesses is likely much higher.
After the outbreak was linked to carrots, a recall was announced by Grimmway Farms, a California-based company that manufactures bagged organic carrots for numerous retailers in the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico.
The recalled carrots were sold under many popular brands, including:
- 365 (Whole Foods)
- Bunny Luv
- Cal-Organic
- Compliments
- Full Circle
- Good & Gather (Target)
- GreenWise (Publix)
- Marketside (Walmart)
- Nature’s Promise (Giant Food, Stop & Shop, Food Lion, etc.)
- O-Organics (Albertsons, Safeway, etc.)
- President’s Choice
- Simple Truth (Kroger)
- Trader Joe’s
- Wegmans
- Wholesome Pantry
The whole carrots were available for purchase at stores between August 14 and October 23, 2024. The recall also involves bagged organic baby carrots with best-by dates ranging from September 11 through November 12, 2024.
These carrots should no longer be available to buy in stores, but they may still be in your refrigerator or freezer.
The carrots “may have been contaminated with Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (E. coli) O121:H19,” the FDA warned. This is a dangerous strain of E. coli that can cause serious and sometimes deadly infections.
According to the FDA: “Some infections can cause severe bloody diarrhea conditions, such as a hemolytic uremic syndrome, or the development of high blood pressure, chronic kidney disease, and neurologic problems.”
The symptoms include severe stomach cramps, diarrhea, fever, nausea, and/or vomiting. The symptoms may appear within 24 hours of eating contaminated food, but it ranges up to 10 days.
If you bought any of the recalled carrots listed in the recall, throw them out or return them to the store, and then disinfect any surfaces that may have touched the carrots. Call your healthcare provider if you develop severe E. coli symptoms.
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