Lancaster, PA company, Mary’s Home Canning, is recalling 516 jars of Mary’s Homemade Vegetable Soup (Net Wt. 16 OZ) and 1,128 jars of Mary’s Homemade Vegetable Soup (Net Wt. 32 OZ), because it has the potential to be contaminated with Clostridium botulinum, a bacterium which can cause life-threatening illness or death. Consumers are warned not to use the product even if it does not look or smell spoiled.
These products were packaged in clear glass jars with white screw top lids in pint-size and quart-size varieties. The label of the jar reads in part: “Mary’s Home Made Vegetable Soup…Heat and Serve…829-A Strasburg Road, Paradise, PA 17562.” No codes or expiration dates are present on these products.
No illnesses have been reported to date.
The potential for contamination was noted after FDA testing found that the pH of the product was high and it did not receive an adequate process time or temperature.
Food borne botulism is a severe intoxication caused by eating the preformed toxin present in contaminated food.
Food borne botulism occurs when the bacterium Clostridium botulinum is allowed to grow and produce toxin in food that is later eaten without sufficient heating or cooking to inactivate the toxin. Botulinum toxin is one of the most potent neurotoxins known.
Typically in a few hours to several days after you eat the contaminated food you will start to show the classic symptoms; blurred vision, dry mouth, and difficulty in swallowing. Gastrointestinal symptoms may or may not occur. If untreated, the paralysis always descends through the body starting at the shoulders and working its way down.
The most serious complication of botulism is respiratory failure where it is fatal in up to 10% of people. It may take months before recovery is complete.
If the disease is caught early enough it can be treated with antitoxin. If paralysis and respiratory failure happen, the person may be on a ventilator for several weeks.
Anyone with a product fitting the above description should return the product to where it was purchased, if possible, or call Mary’s Home Canning at 717-442-8349 for return instructions. Phone calls should be made during Eastern Standard Time.
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