Avocados Are Being Recalled in 6 States Over Listeria Concerns

A California-based avocado grower has issued a recall of avocados sent to at least six U.S. states over fears they could be contaminated by potentially fatal bacteria.

Henry Avocado said Saturday it was concerned the bacteria listeria monocytogenes could be present in the avocados that it had sold in bulk to stores in Arizona, California, Florida, New Hampshire, North Carolina and Wisconsin.

The company says the offending fruit can be identified by stickers reading “bravocado,” or, in the case of its organic avocados, stickers including the words “organic” and “California.”

Listeria can be especially dangerous to children, the elderly and pregnant women, causing symptoms including fever, headaches, diarrhea, convulsions and a loss of balance. For pregnant women, infection can result in stillbirth.

“Henry Avocado is issuing this voluntary recall out of an abundance of caution due to positive test results on environmental samples taken during a routine government inspection at its California packing facility,” the company said in a press release.

Henry Avocado says customers should discard the avocados or return them to their place of purchase for a full refund.