A Delaware cheese manufacturer pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor count of violating the federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, for its role as the source of a 2014 Listeria outbreak.
The company--Roos Foods, Inc.—and its owners also entered into a civil agreement, barring the distribution of any more products unless FDA confirms its operations are incompliance with all federal and food safety regulations.
The company, which manufactures ready-to-eat cheeses such as ricotta, queso fresco and fresh cheese curd, was linked to an outbreak of Listeria monocytogenes that sickened eight people in 2013. Seven people were hospitalized. FDA suspended Roos Foods, Inc.’s facility registration in March 2014, which barred the company from introducing food into interstate commerce. The agency’s order of suspension details sanitation problems and cites findings of L. mono contamination in multiple places in the facility.