The just-cook-it company has just been told to recall all of its frozen food after an E. coli O121 outbreak linked to the New York plant has sickened at least 24 people.
JoNel Aleccia at NBC News reports that Rich Products Corp. of Buffalo, N.Y., is pulling pepperoni pizzas, mozzarella bites, Philly cheese steaks and a host of other products with best buy dates from Jan. 1, 2013 through Sept. 29, 2014.
Seven people have been hospitalized, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
However, many more people may have been sickened by the products but not yet know it because of complexities involved in identifying E. coli O121, a strain that can be just as dangerous as the better-known E. coli O157:H7 frequently tied to outbreaks caused by hamburger.
The New York state Department of Health identified the outbreak strain of E. coli O121 in an opened package of Farm Rich brand frozen mini chicken and cheese quesadillas from an ill person’s home, the CDC said.