The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture has issued a health alert, warning consumers and retailers who have purchased raw milk from Green Acres Jersey Farm, 725 Prescott Road, Lebanon, to discard it immediately due to the risk of Listeria monocytogenes contamination.
The department noted that the raw milk sample, which was collected during a routine sampling by a commercial laboratory on 29 July, tested positive for the bacteria. The officials at the department have ordered the farm to halt the sale of all raw milk until further notice.
Green Acres Jersey Farm, owned by Jonathan Smoker, sells directly to consumers and in an on-farm retail store. The packaged raw milk is sold under the Green Acres Jersey Farm label in plastic gallon and half gallon containers, labeled as 'raw milk'.
Raw milk is milk that has not been pasteurized. While Pennsylvania law allows farms to sell raw milk, the farms should have a permit and should be inspected by the agriculture department to reduce health risks associated with unpasteurized products.
No illnesses have been reported associated with the health alert.
Symptoms of Listeriosis usually appear within one-to-three weeks, but can occur as short as three days or as long as 70 days after consumption. The symptoms include fever, muscle aches and gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea or diarrhea. If the infection spreads to the nervous system, symptoms such as headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance or convulsions can occur.
