Everything We Know About The Wegmans Butter Recall
Wegmans stores carry more than just the basics for grocery shoppers, like a Mediterranean Olive Bar that Only In Your State says New Yorkers could spend all day poring over. One of their more niche products is being pulled off the shelves across all Wegmans locations.
Despite this recent recall, Wegmans has a reputation for ranking among the most popular grocery store chains in the United States. According to Business Insider, in 2018, a survey chose Wegmans as the country's best grocery chain. Additionally, a 2013 Buzzfeed article listed 25 reasons Wegmans is a great place to shop, and a 2015 Washington Post piece also sang Wegmans' praises.
Among the many things those outlets have expressed adoration of are Wegmans' private-label foods, which Buzzfeed said are usually better and cheaper than other brands. One of the butter products within that line is something people should avoid for the time being, though — and for a serious reason, too.
Check your Wegmans butter now
If you bought a tub of the Wegmans brand Lemon Dill Finishing Butter with a "best-by" date between July 5 and November 17, 2022, you should check the tub's UPC code before using its contents. The product could be part of a recall the butter's manufacturer, Epicurean, has issued over a legitimate health concern.
According to an August 19 release from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Epicurean issued the recall because one of its suppliers notified Epicurean that the dill in some of the tubs could be contaminated with listeria bacteria. The FDA says the affected Wegmans Lemon Dill Finishing Butter tubs are black, weigh 3.5 ounces, and bear a UPC code of 0077890443248 with lot numbers ranging from 16314 to 17037.
While the FDA stresses that there are (as of yet) no reports of anyone getting sick due to this issue and the recall only concerns the one variety of Wegmans butter, listeria is nothing to take lightly. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that infections cause 260 annual deaths and even for survivors, symptoms can include fever and seizures. Unfortunately, it's something that food producers and distributors must constantly be on guard against, too. This isn't the first listeria-linked recall to occur this year, as in May, these pre-cut fruit items were recalled due to a potential listeria infection as well. With all food safety issues, it's best to err on the side of caution.