Supermarkets withdraw products after deadly food poisoning outbreak

Chains including Tesco, Iceland, Aldi, and Waitrose have together pulled 43 varieties of packs of frozen vegetables from their shelves, fearing that frozen sweetcorn may be the cause of an outbreak of a rare disease called listeriosis.

Listeriosis is usually caught from eating food containing listeria bacteria, with the contaminated sweetcorn thought to originate from a factory in Hungary.

Two people are reported to have died in the UK and a further seven across Europe.

Public Health England and the Food Standards Agency have moved to reassure the public.

Dr Kathie Grant, head of the Gastrointestinal Bacteria Reference Unit at PHE, said: "Most people won't have any symptoms of the infection or will only experience mild symptoms such as vomiting and diarrhoea, which usually pass within a few days without the need for treatment.

"More serious infection can develop in those with weakened immune systems or in vulnerable groups, including babies, the elderly or pregnant women.

"The best way to prevent listeriosis is to practise good food hygiene. We are reminding people that most frozen vegetables, including sweetcorn, need to be cooked before eating."

A full list of the recalled products can be found below:

• Pinguin Frozen Sweetcorn
• Pinguin Supersweet Sweetcorn
• Tesco Frozen Broccoli, Carrot and Sweetcorn Steamer
• Tesco Frozen Every Day Value Sweetcorn
• Ross Mixed Vegetables
• One Stop Frozen Sweetcorn
• Aldi Four Seasons Frozen Vegetable Steamers
• Aldi Frozen Four Seasons Mixed Vegetables
• Pinguin Sweetcorn
• Aldi Four Seasons Supersweet Sweetcorn
• Waitrose Essential Supersweet Sweetcorn
• Waitrose Essential Mixed Vegetable
• Tesco Frozen Mixed Vegetables
• Waitrose Fine Cut Vegetable Steamer
• Waitrose Love Life Vegetable Medley Steamers
• Sainsbury Frozen Special Mixed Vegetables
• Growers Pride Mixed Vegetables
• Sainsbury Frozen Basic Mixed Vegetables
• Sainsbury Frozen Rice Broccoli and Sweetcorn
• Sainsbury Frozen Mixed Vegetables
• Sainsbury Frozen Carrot Broccoli and Sweetcorn
• Pinguin Supersweet Corn
• Lidl Frozen Green Grocer Supersweet Corn
• Tesco Growers Harvest Frozen Mixed Vegetables
• Lidl Frozen Freshona Vegetable Mix
• Iceland Frozen Mixed Vegetables
• Pinguin Frozen Mixed Vegetables
• Independent Mix Vegetables
• Ross Mixed Vegetables
• Pinguin Mixed Vegetable
• Pinguin Frozen Cut Beans
• Growers Pride Mixed Vegetables
• Ross Mixed Country Vegetables
• Growers Pride Supersweet Sweetcorn
• Pinguin frozen Golden Rice and Vegetables
• Growers Pride Supersweet Sweetcorn
• Ross Sweetcorn
• Ross Sweetcorn
• Tesco Frozen Sweetcorn
• Tesco frozen Mixed Vegetables and Peppers
• Tesco Broccoli Frozen Sweetcorn Peas and Spinach Steamer
• Tesco Frozen Growers Harvest Carrot Peas and Sweetcorn Steamer
• Tesco Frozen Growers Harvest Mixed Vegetables