Burch Farms Cantaloupe Recall Affects 'Caribbean Gold,' Not 'Athena'
No illnesses have yet been reported.
The company has recalled 13,888 cases (9 cantaloupes per) and 581 crates (110 cantaloupes per) containing 188,902 melons in all.
Burch Farms expanded its recall from an original 580 cases after a U.S. Food and Drug Administration inspection discovered "unsanitary conditions" at the company's packing shed.
The original recall of 580 cases came on Saturday, July 28. With this correction issued sometime on Friday, August 3, consumers went six days with incorrect information about the variety of cantaloupe posing a Listeria risk.
The whole Caribbean Gold cantaloupes shipped between July 15th and July 27th to FL, GA, IL, MD, ME, NC, NJ, NY, PA, SC and VA.
The cantaloupes are identified by a red label reading "Burch Farms" referencing PLU #4319. All cantaloupes involved in the recall were grown by Burch Farms, though some may be identified with a "Cottle Strawberry, Inc." sticker referencing PLU #4319. Cottle Farms is not involved in this recall.
Customers are urged to discard any cantaloupes possibly connected to this recall.
Unlike Athena cantaloupes, which fall from the vine when ripe, Caribbean Golds must be cut during harvest.
Caribbean Golds appear more coarse and rounded:
Athenas appear lighter and show prominent grooves:
The cantaloupes' possible Listeria contamination was discovered through routine testing by the Microbiological Data Program (MDP), a produce testing program within the U.S. Department of Agriculture that accounts for approximately 80 percent of fruit and vegetable testing conducted in the U.S.