Romaine lettuce recalled from more than 1,000 Walmart stores over E. coli risk

Walmart issued a recall on romaine lettuce sold at thousands of stores in 19 states and Puerto Rico.

"Out of an abundance of caution, Tanimura & Antle Inc. is voluntarily recalling its packaged single head romaine lettuce under the Tanimura & Antle brand, labeled with a packed on date of 10/15/2020 or 10/16/2020, due to possible contamination with E. coli," the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said in a release.

The packages contain a single head of romaine lettuce with the UPC number 0-27918-20314-9.

"At Tanimura & Antle, food safety is a number one priority and the company prides itself on its preventative measures," the company said in a statement with the issued recall. "It is unlikely that this product remains at retail establishments due to the shelf life of lettuce and the number of days that have passed. We are asking that if any of the packaged single head romaine described above is in the possession of consumers, retailers or distributors, the product be disposed of and not consumed."

No other products or pack dates are being recalled. There have been no reported illnesses associated with the recalled product.

The recall was issued after a random sample collected and analyzed by the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development as part of its routine sampling program.

The 3,396 cartons of potentially affected product were distributed to the following locations: Alaska, Arkansas, California, Illinois, Indiana, Massachusetts, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin.

According to the FDA, E. coli causes a diarrheal illness, often with bloody stools, and while most healthy adults can completely recover within a week, some can develop a form of kidney failure called hemolytic uremic syndrome. HUS is most likely to occur in young children and the elderly, which can lead to serious kidney damage and even death.

Consumers who experience any symptoms have been urged to contact their physician.