Four Brands Added in Recall of Contaminated Brie Cheese

WASHINGTON â€”  The Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday expanded the nationwide recall of Brie cheese to four additional brands that may be contaminated with a potentially fatal bacteria.

The new brands being recalled were distributed in 4- and 6-pound wheels, the FDA said, so consumers may encounter it in smaller wedges repackaged in cellophane. The agency advised consumers to ask the brand and lot number when purchasing Brie in unmarked wedges.

The FDA said the new brands being voluntarily recalled by Martin-Collet/Galac Clandel U.S.A. are:

--Fleurs de France, codes 320 and 018. The FDA said it could identify the distributors only as Olfisco, European Imports and Walker Foods.

--Marco, code 320, distributed by European Imports.

--Martin-Collet and Meaux Martin-Collet, code 320, distributed by Olfisco and European Imports.

Came From Same Plant

--Village Martin-Collet, code 320, distributed by European Imports.

The FDA said all four came from the same plant in France and may be contaminated by Listeria monocytogenes , a potentially fatal bacteria.

The bacteria is found in milk but is usually killed by pasteurization. If it is not, it can cause listeriosis, an illness that can be life-threatening to pregnant women and their fetuses, the FDA said.

The bacteria also can be dangerous to small children and frail elderly people or others with a weakened immune system. In healthy adults, the agency said, it may cause a short-lived flu-like illness.

It is the same bacteria that was found in contaminated Mexican-style soft cheeses in the Los Angeles area last year. California health officials said that more than 200 people were sickened after eating the contaminated Jalisco brand cheese, and 39 deaths were linked to the cheese.

The FDA said it had no reports of deaths or illnesses linked to contaminated Brie.