Family Farmstead Dairy is recalling raw milk cheddar cheese over E. coli

Family Farmstead Dairy of Worcester, New York, is recalling a specific lot of its raw mild cheddar cheese because the product may be contaminated with Shiga toxin-producing E. coli, the company said in an announcement dated Oct. 15. The company named E. coli O26:H11 and O45:H2 as the strains involved.

The recalled product is Family Farmstead Dairy Raw Mild Cheddar Cheese, sold under the Family Farmstead brand with lot code 7/22/27 and a best-by date of 7/22/27. The company said no other Family Farmstead Dairy products are included, and it has received no reports of illness or allergic reactions.

The company said the problem came to light when a laboratory sample in Maryland found two strains of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli in two samples of Family Farmstead A2 Raw Cheddar, both 8-ounce packages dated 7/22/27.

Family Farmstead Dairy said it shipped the cheese to grocers in New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Connecticut, Maryland, Virginia and Massachusetts, and that downstream distributors may have sent the product to other states. The cheese comes wrapped in see-through plastic marked with white, red and green labels, according to Food Safety News.

Consumers who bought the cheese should throw it away or take it back to the store where they bought it for a full refund, the company said. E. coli O26:H11 and O45:H2 cause diarrheal illness that often includes bloody stools, the company said. Most healthy adults recover within a week, but some people develop hemolytic uremic syndrome, a form of kidney failure. The condition is most likely to affect young children and the elderly and can lead to serious kidney damage and death, the company said.

Customers with questions can call Family Farmstead Dairy at (607) 397-4044 or email customerservice@familyfarmsteaddairy.com, from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern, Monday through Friday.

"We sincerely apologize to our customers, retail partners, and consumers for the inconvenience caused by this recall," the company said in a statement. It said it is committed to identifying the cause and taking corrective action.

The recall follows another raw milk cheese recall tied to E. coli. On Sept. 24, Sierra Nevada Cheese Company began recalling all of its Graziers Raw Milk Cheese products after the FDA recommended the step. The FDA and the CDC are investigating a multistate outbreak of E. coli O26:H11 infections linked to that cheese. Thirteen people in nine states became ill, with eight requiring hospital care and three going on to develop hemolytic uremic syndrome.