A public health alert has been issued for a brand of deli meat sold in the U.S. due to possible listeria contamination.
On Saturday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service raised concerns about a Daisy Brand headcheese that may have been contaminated with listeria monocytogenes, a bacterium that could cause a serious form of food poisoning. A recall wasn’t issued because the products are no longer available for purchase.
“Headcheese is a ready-to-eat (RTE), pork deli meat product typically made from meat and seasonings that are cooked together and formed into a loaf or jelly-style product,” according to the FSIS announcement.
The health alert came after the FSIS collected an unopened headcheese product sample that tested positive for listeria monocytogenes. The testing was conducted during an ongoing investigation of a listeria outbreak in Illinois, where at least three people have gotten sick.
“Further testing is ongoing to determine if the product samples are related to the specific outbreak strain,” the agency stated.
The meat products were produced on January 20, 2026, and sold in various weight packages or sliced in retail delis. They can either be identified as “DAISY BRAND Meat Products HEADCHEESE,” with a Use By date of March 26, 2026, or as “DAISY BRAND Meat Products HEADCHEESE,” with a red sticker indicating “HOT” and a Use By date of March 26, 2026.
Affected products also had the establishment number “EST. 21406” and were distributed to retail deli locations in Illinois and Indiana.
The FSIS has urged shoppers to dispose of the meat products immediately or return them to the place of purchase. Consumers should also thoroughly clean their refrigerators to prevent the risk of cross-contamination.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, listeria are “bacteria that can contaminate many foods” and lead to foodborne illnesses when consumed. Although symptoms can vary, a listeria infection can cause invasive and intestinal illness. Short-term symptoms among healthy individuals can include high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea and abdominal pain.
Listeria infection is the third leading cause of death from foodborne illness in the United States, killing roughly 172 people per year, as noted by the CDC.
The headcheese isn’t the only food product that has recently raised concerns about a health risk. On Friday, the FDA announced that Spring & Mulberry recalled an entire range of its date-sweetened chocolate bars due to a possible salmonella risk. The move was an expansion of an initial recall, issued in January, of the brand’s Mint Leaf Date Sweetened Chocolate Bar.
“The investigation has now identified a single lot of date ingredient used in the production of the company’s chocolate as the most likely source of contamination,” the agency said in the news release.
