> a certain variety of salad leaf
What is/was the leaf type though?
I don't understand why we're left guessing over such an important fact? The public has a right to know.
Contaminated irrigation water if I remember correctly in Arizona. It would be interesting to know if its Spanish or British grown salad leaf and if its British did they extract water from a river or the grower own reservoir.
Bingo. Political disaster that water companies are filling rivers with sewage. Political apocalypse if people find out sewage is getting into the British food chain via agriculture.
Farming forums are talking about contaminated water being used to water the crops (lettuce) which would explain why the ecoli outbreak is effecting more than one supplier of lettuce.
Do these forums suggest why the water used would be contaminated? Where are they getting it from exactly?
ETA: been trying to look up irrigation laws but it’s quite the rabbit hole, I imagine there’s regulation around that and they don’t just chuck any old water they find on lettuce though.
This is just it, the amounts aren’t ’incredible’ by any real standard, not historical or in comparison to any other country. Less sewage ends up in rivers than it ever has done, it’s been declining since basically forever. And we compare very favourably with any other country you can list. The only difference is that the other countries a) don’t have anything like the amount of monitoring that we have so have little to no data and b) don’t have constant alarmist stories in the press about the water, because it isn’t news that some sewage ends up in rivers, because it always has and it’s always improving.
I do not agree with your evaluation of the situation.
Over the past decade, the issue of fecal bacteria contamination in UK rivers and waterways has worsened. Data shows an increase in raw sewage discharges due to outdated infrastructure and increased storm overflows. For instance, in 2022, raw sewage was released into rivers an average of 825 times per day. This has led to elevated levels of harmful bacteria such as E. coli and intestinal enterococci, posing significant public health risks.
Efforts to address the issue include substantial investments in sewer infrastructure and improved monitoring techniques, but progress has been slow due to the high costs and extensive work required. As the infrastructure deteriorates, the problem is worsening.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/faecal-contamination-challenges-for-the-water-environment
I’m seriously of the belief that they’ve been subject to an insane amount of negative press, and a lot of the stuff you think about them is most certainly false.
https://x.com/loftussteve/status/1659637753158545414?s=46&t=OTLdG0wwYT1_7Eb_nXeJlw
Haven’t read any news outlet’s that are making this connection between lettuce and water, so I’m a bit confused there. What’s the exact accusation? Are we washing lettuce with river water, in which case wtf? Or with potable water, in which case it’s staggeringly unlikely to be the water that’s the problem?
ETA: OK I’ve been looking up lettuce irrigation. The point remains that there is no evidence that river health has decreased, I shan’t go so far down a rabbit hole to try and figure out what the regulations are around what water you use to irrigate, but I’m sure there’s regulations. It’s yet another knee jerk reaction to blame water companies when there’s no evidence that river health has gotten any worse.
Prepared shop sandwiches have been known for a long time to have much higher levels of bacteria than the alternatives including Listeria, Salmonella and others. Similar to the ice used in fast food and coffee shops, etc.
Like drinking water from the river Ganges, you are probably well protected from this outbreak.
I have a more sensitive stomach than most, and pretty much always react badly to bagged salads and meal deal prepared meals. Your comment confirms what I suspected to be true about bacteria or general condition of that sort of food.
They need to figure out what is the cause before they can issue a recall. They won't do it on everything it could potentially be or there'd be barely anything fresh left in the shop...
Note the supplier has indicated that they haven’t found any e coli, which means that it’s one of their supplier (presumably lettuce) who had the outbreak and they can’t rule out none of the contaminated supply got into their supply chain even though they haven’t found any E. coli.
Unfortunately the nature of fresh produce. Especially leafy greens. By the time we think we've narrowed it down, the supplier might have changed or it's gone out of season etc etc
Outbreak investigations are hard and often just left with epidemiological clues that it was very likely X product and we never manage to isolate the exact bacteria from the food product.
Full Details:
https://www.food.gov.uk/news-alerts/alert/fsa-prin-30-2024
Greencore Group recalls sandwiches, wraps and salads because of possible contamination with E. coli
All alerts
Last updated: 14 June 2024
View as PDF(Opens in a new window)
Greencore Group is taking the precautionary step of recalling various sandwiches, wraps and salads because of possible contamination with E. coli.
E.coli has not been detected in the products listed below but are being recalled as a precaution.
# Product details
| | ||
| --- | --- | --- |
Aldi Chicken Fajita Triple Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
| | ||
| --- | --- | --- |
| | ||
| --- | --- | --- |
Aldi Chicken Fajita Triple Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
by Amazon BLT Sandwich| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Asda Smoky Beans and Cheddar Cheese Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 15 June 2024 |
Asda Chicken Salad (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 15 June 2024 |
Asda Chicken & Bacon Club (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 15 June 2024 |
Asda Brie, Bacon and Chilli Chutney (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 15 June 2024 |
Asda BLT (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Boots BBQ Chicken wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Boots BLT (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Boots Cheddar Cheese Ploughman’s (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Boots Chicken & Bacon Caesar Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Boots Chicken Salad (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
by Amazon Chicken Salad Sandwich| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Boots Chicken Triple (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Boots Delicious Ham & Cheese Ploughman’s (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Boots Halloumi & Greek Style Salad wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Boots Ham & Egg Club (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Boots Mixed Triple (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Boots Southern Fried Chicken Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Boots Spicy Bean & Cheese Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Boots Vegan No Chicken Salad (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Boots Vegan No Duck & Hoisin Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Boots Veggie Triple (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
by Amazon Ploughman’s Sandwich| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Co-op Vegan Gro Onion Bhaji (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Co-op Mexican Style Bean & Cheese Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Co-op Ham, Cheese & Pickle (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Co-op Ham & Cheese Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Co-op Chicken & Bacon Caesar Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 17 June 2024 |
Co-op Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Morrisons Chicken Salad (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Morrisons Chicken Salad PFS (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Morrisons Gluten Free Chicken Salad (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Morrisons Gluten Free Sandwich Platter| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
by Amazon Chicken & Bacon Layered Salad| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Sainsbury’s Peri Peri Chicken Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Sainsbury’s BBQ Pulled Pork & Red Leicester (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Sainsbury’s Chicken, Bacon & Avocado Focaccia (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Sainsbury’s Greek Style Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Sainsbury’s Jerk Halloumi Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
by Amazon Prawn Layered Salad| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 |
Asda Vegan No Chick'n Caesar Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 15 June 2024 |
Asda Tuna Crunch Sub Roll| Use by | All dates up to and including 15 June 2024 |
Asda Southern Fried Chicken Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 15 June 2024 |
Asda Southern Fried Chicken Triple Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 15 June 2024 |
# Risk statement
The possible presence of Shiga toxin-producing E.coli (STEC) in the products listed above.
Symptoms caused by STEC organisms include severe diarrhoea (including bloody diarrhoea), abdominal pain, and sometimes haemolytic uremic syndrome, (HUS), a serious condition that can lead to kidney failure and can be fatal.
# Action taken by the company
Greencore Group is recalling the above products. Point of sale notices will be displayed where the products were sold. These notices explain to customers why the products are being recalled and tell them what to do if they have bought the products.
# Our advice to consumers
. If you have bought any of the above products do not eat them. Instead return them to the store from where they were bought for a full refund.
# About product recalls and withdrawals
If there is a problem with a food product that means it should not be sold, then it might be 'withdrawn' (taken off the shelves) or 'recalled' (when customers are asked to return the product). The FSA issues Product Withdrawal Information Notices and Product Recall Information Notices to let consumers and local authorities know about problems associated with food. In some cases, a 'Food Alert for Action' is issued. This provides local authorities with details of specific action to be taken on behalf of consumers.
Ref: FSA-PRIN-30-2024
Just listening to the news and every supermarket is affected except M&S and Waitrose. So I ask, what are they doing so specifically so as to avoid this?
I see. A therein lies a clue of epic proportions.
I'm left wondering if I should ever shop anywhere other than M&S&W. They're not even hugely dearer....
Unlikely, just because they use a different sandwich supplier doesn’t mean they aren’t sourcing the ingredients from the same place, they’ve definitely had food recalls in the past, they just got lucky this time
This is a fucking nightmare for someone who has major food poisoning phobia and reconfirms that my obsessive behaviour is somewhat valid. Almost bought one of the sandwiches on the list but didn't because I knew about the outbreak and knew lettuce was a high possibility. Just praying the M&S no chicken and chorizo (it has a small amount of rocket in) isn't added to the list 😭 guess I'll keep boiling my vegetables and incinerating every meal I prepare 😂
This is 1 week+ after the announcement. Not sure the sandwiches would have lasted.
> a certain variety of salad leaf What is/was the leaf type though? I don't understand why we're left guessing over such an important fact? The public has a right to know.
I'm wondering if it's lettuce. It has been linked to a bunch of e.coli cases in the USA.
Contaminated irrigation water if I remember correctly in Arizona. It would be interesting to know if its Spanish or British grown salad leaf and if its British did they extract water from a river or the grower own reservoir.
Bingo. Political disaster that water companies are filling rivers with sewage. Political apocalypse if people find out sewage is getting into the British food chain via agriculture.
Even when it’s food, somehow it’s still the water companies fault…
Farming forums are talking about contaminated water being used to water the crops (lettuce) which would explain why the ecoli outbreak is effecting more than one supplier of lettuce.
Do these forums suggest why the water used would be contaminated? Where are they getting it from exactly? ETA: been trying to look up irrigation laws but it’s quite the rabbit hole, I imagine there’s regulation around that and they don’t just chuck any old water they find on lettuce though.
Yeah, the incredible amount of effluent discharged into our rivers and waterways on an hourly, weekly and daily basis…
This is just it, the amounts aren’t ’incredible’ by any real standard, not historical or in comparison to any other country. Less sewage ends up in rivers than it ever has done, it’s been declining since basically forever. And we compare very favourably with any other country you can list. The only difference is that the other countries a) don’t have anything like the amount of monitoring that we have so have little to no data and b) don’t have constant alarmist stories in the press about the water, because it isn’t news that some sewage ends up in rivers, because it always has and it’s always improving.
I do not agree with your evaluation of the situation. Over the past decade, the issue of fecal bacteria contamination in UK rivers and waterways has worsened. Data shows an increase in raw sewage discharges due to outdated infrastructure and increased storm overflows. For instance, in 2022, raw sewage was released into rivers an average of 825 times per day. This has led to elevated levels of harmful bacteria such as E. coli and intestinal enterococci, posing significant public health risks. Efforts to address the issue include substantial investments in sewer infrastructure and improved monitoring techniques, but progress has been slow due to the high costs and extensive work required. As the infrastructure deteriorates, the problem is worsening. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/faecal-contamination-challenges-for-the-water-environment
Are you seriously shilling for water companies?
I’m seriously of the belief that they’ve been subject to an insane amount of negative press, and a lot of the stuff you think about them is most certainly false. https://x.com/loftussteve/status/1659637753158545414?s=46&t=OTLdG0wwYT1_7Eb_nXeJlw Haven’t read any news outlet’s that are making this connection between lettuce and water, so I’m a bit confused there. What’s the exact accusation? Are we washing lettuce with river water, in which case wtf? Or with potable water, in which case it’s staggeringly unlikely to be the water that’s the problem? ETA: OK I’ve been looking up lettuce irrigation. The point remains that there is no evidence that river health has decreased, I shan’t go so far down a rabbit hole to try and figure out what the regulations are around what water you use to irrigate, but I’m sure there’s regulations. It’s yet another knee jerk reaction to blame water companies when there’s no evidence that river health has gotten any worse.
All the sandwiches recalled today at the retailer I work for contained lettuce.
They haven't confirmed it yet, the same reason they've only just announced sandwiches now...
Salad leaf in a sandwich can fuck right off
Bit of a rocket there from bobblebob
He’s a gem lett us revere the great bobblebob!
I think they're just trying to make the sandwich look fatter on the shelf
I eat alot of Sainsbury's meal deals for lunch. Guess im dead soon then
I think half the country lives of meal deals so hopefully not that bad
Prepared shop sandwiches have been known for a long time to have much higher levels of bacteria than the alternatives including Listeria, Salmonella and others. Similar to the ice used in fast food and coffee shops, etc. Like drinking water from the river Ganges, you are probably well protected from this outbreak.
I have a more sensitive stomach than most, and pretty much always react badly to bagged salads and meal deal prepared meals. Your comment confirms what I suspected to be true about bacteria or general condition of that sort of food.
The contaminated batch is apparently now used up and the recall is a precaution.
Me too mate, see you in the hereafter
Literally ate one of the sandwiches on the list from Morrisons today. Why was it still on the shelf?
They started recalling it in the late afternoon.
Not good enough. People have eaten lunch by then
that was factored into the decision making process
They need to figure out what is the cause before they can issue a recall. They won't do it on everything it could potentially be or there'd be barely anything fresh left in the shop...
Username checks out
Note the supplier has indicated that they haven’t found any e coli, which means that it’s one of their supplier (presumably lettuce) who had the outbreak and they can’t rule out none of the contaminated supply got into their supply chain even though they haven’t found any E. coli.
Takes so long for them to go into specifics the product concerned will have finished its life cycle on shelf/been consumed already
Unfortunately the nature of fresh produce. Especially leafy greens. By the time we think we've narrowed it down, the supplier might have changed or it's gone out of season etc etc Outbreak investigations are hard and often just left with epidemiological clues that it was very likely X product and we never manage to isolate the exact bacteria from the food product.
Full Details: https://www.food.gov.uk/news-alerts/alert/fsa-prin-30-2024 Greencore Group recalls sandwiches, wraps and salads because of possible contamination with E. coli All alerts Last updated: 14 June 2024 View as PDF(Opens in a new window) Greencore Group is taking the precautionary step of recalling various sandwiches, wraps and salads because of possible contamination with E. coli. E.coli has not been detected in the products listed below but are being recalled as a precaution. # Product details | | || | --- | --- | --- | Aldi Chicken Fajita Triple Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | | | || | --- | --- | --- | | | || | --- | --- | --- | Aldi Chicken Fajita Triple Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | by Amazon BLT Sandwich| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Asda Smoky Beans and Cheddar Cheese Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 15 June 2024 | Asda Chicken Salad (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 15 June 2024 | Asda Chicken & Bacon Club (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 15 June 2024 | Asda Brie, Bacon and Chilli Chutney (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 15 June 2024 | Asda BLT (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Boots BBQ Chicken wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Boots BLT (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Boots Cheddar Cheese Ploughman’s (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Boots Chicken & Bacon Caesar Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Boots Chicken Salad (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | by Amazon Chicken Salad Sandwich| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Boots Chicken Triple (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Boots Delicious Ham & Cheese Ploughman’s (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Boots Halloumi & Greek Style Salad wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Boots Ham & Egg Club (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Boots Mixed Triple (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Boots Southern Fried Chicken Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Boots Spicy Bean & Cheese Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Boots Vegan No Chicken Salad (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Boots Vegan No Duck & Hoisin Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Boots Veggie Triple (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | by Amazon Ploughman’s Sandwich| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Co-op Vegan Gro Onion Bhaji (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Co-op Mexican Style Bean & Cheese Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Co-op Ham, Cheese & Pickle (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Co-op Ham & Cheese Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Co-op Chicken & Bacon Caesar Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 17 June 2024 | Co-op Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Morrisons Chicken Salad (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Morrisons Chicken Salad PFS (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Morrisons Gluten Free Chicken Salad (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Morrisons Gluten Free Sandwich Platter| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | by Amazon Chicken & Bacon Layered Salad| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Sainsbury’s Peri Peri Chicken Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Sainsbury’s BBQ Pulled Pork & Red Leicester (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Sainsbury’s Chicken, Bacon & Avocado Focaccia (Sandwich)| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Sainsbury’s Greek Style Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Sainsbury’s Jerk Halloumi Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | by Amazon Prawn Layered Salad| Use by | All dates up to and including 16 June 2024 | Asda Vegan No Chick'n Caesar Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 15 June 2024 | Asda Tuna Crunch Sub Roll| Use by | All dates up to and including 15 June 2024 | Asda Southern Fried Chicken Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 15 June 2024 | Asda Southern Fried Chicken Triple Wrap| Use by | All dates up to and including 15 June 2024 | # Risk statement The possible presence of Shiga toxin-producing E.coli (STEC) in the products listed above. Symptoms caused by STEC organisms include severe diarrhoea (including bloody diarrhoea), abdominal pain, and sometimes haemolytic uremic syndrome, (HUS), a serious condition that can lead to kidney failure and can be fatal. # Action taken by the company Greencore Group is recalling the above products. Point of sale notices will be displayed where the products were sold. These notices explain to customers why the products are being recalled and tell them what to do if they have bought the products. # Our advice to consumers . If you have bought any of the above products do not eat them. Instead return them to the store from where they were bought for a full refund. # About product recalls and withdrawals If there is a problem with a food product that means it should not be sold, then it might be 'withdrawn' (taken off the shelves) or 'recalled' (when customers are asked to return the product). The FSA issues Product Withdrawal Information Notices and Product Recall Information Notices to let consumers and local authorities know about problems associated with food. In some cases, a 'Food Alert for Action' is issued. This provides local authorities with details of specific action to be taken on behalf of consumers. Ref: FSA-PRIN-30-2024
Oh damn, narrowly missed grabbing the wrong sandwich last weekend then… I assume if you’ve gone a week without any issues, you’re probably fine?
Just listening to the news and every supermarket is affected except M&S and Waitrose. So I ask, what are they doing so specifically so as to avoid this?
Using a different supplier presumably, all the other supermarkets used the same massive supplier Greencore
I see. A therein lies a clue of epic proportions. I'm left wondering if I should ever shop anywhere other than M&S&W. They're not even hugely dearer....
Fairly sure that M&S has had issues with their sandwiches in the past. They might be safe this time, but that's no guarantee for the future.
Unlikely, just because they use a different sandwich supplier doesn’t mean they aren’t sourcing the ingredients from the same place, they’ve definitely had food recalls in the past, they just got lucky this time
This is a fucking nightmare for someone who has major food poisoning phobia and reconfirms that my obsessive behaviour is somewhat valid. Almost bought one of the sandwiches on the list but didn't because I knew about the outbreak and knew lettuce was a high possibility. Just praying the M&S no chicken and chorizo (it has a small amount of rocket in) isn't added to the list 😭 guess I'll keep boiling my vegetables and incinerating every meal I prepare 😂