Six people have died and 25 people have been hospitalized due to a listeria outbreak linked to now-recalled precooked pasta meals, according to an update provided by the Food and Drug Administration last week.
The outbreak was first announced in June and has caused a wave of recalls of ready-to-eat pasta meals that include pasta from food supplier Nate's Fine Foods, according to the FDA. The FDA is working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to investigate the multistate listeria outbreak.
"Since the last CDC case count update on September 25, 2025, a total of 7 new illnesses from 3 states have been reported, with 2 additional deaths reported," the FDA wrote in its update on Thursday, adding that "one pregnancy-associated illness resulted in a fetal loss."
Out of the 27 people who have fallen ill from this outbreak, 25 had been hospitalized as of Thursday.
Cases have been reported in 18 states: California, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, Nevada, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Virginia and Washington.
What foods are affected?
In September, Nate’s Fine Foods announced the recall of various precooked pasta dishes, several of which are sold at supermarket chains:
- FreshRealm’s Home Chef Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo 12.5-oz (sold at Kroger and Walmart)
- FreshRealm’s Marketside Grilled Chicken Alfredo with Fettuccine 12.3-oz and 32.8-oz (sold at Kroger and Walmart)
- FreshRealm’s Marketside Linguine with Beef Meatballs & Marinara Sauce 12-oz. (sold at Walmart)
- Albertsons Companies store-made deli pasta salads (sold under multiple brand names including Albertsons, Safeway and Vons)
- Trader Joe’s Cajun Style Blackened Chicken Breast Fettucine Alfredo 16-oz plastic tray packages
- Demer Food Group’s Scott & Jon’s Shrimp Scampi with Linguini Bowls 9.6-oz
- Kroger deli bowtie and penne pasta salads
- Giant Eagle smoked mozzarella pasta salad
- Sprouts Farmers Market smoked mozzarella pasta salad
The FDA advises consumers to “double check their refrigerators and freezers for recalled foods.”
The consumption of food contaminated with listeria can cause listeriosis, a dangerous infection that can seriously affect older adults, people with weakened immune systems, pregnant women and newborns, according to the the Food Safety and Inspection Service.
“Listeriosis can cause fever, muscle aches, headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance and convulsions sometimes preceded by diarrhea or other gastrointestinal symptoms,” the FSIS said in a release. “In pregnant women, the infection can cause miscarriages, stillbirths, premature delivery or life-threatening infection of the newborn.”
Listeria infection is the third leading cause of death from foodborne illness in the U.S., according to the CDC. Each year, an estimated 1,250 people are infected with Listeria and 172 die from the infection in the U.S.