FDA: Viva Raw Issues Voluntary Recall of Dog, Cat Food Due to Listeria Monocytogenes Health Risk

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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recently reported that Viva Raw LLC, Hillsborough, NC is voluntarily recalling dog and cat foods, including the Viva Turkey for Dogs Ground, Viva Turkey for Dogs Chunked, Viva Turkey for Cats, Viva Pure Turkey and Viva Beef & Turkey for Puppies all manufactured under Lot 21244 because this lot, which includes these five products, are contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes and is a potential health risk to people and pets.

Listeria monocytogenes can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in pets eating contaminated products. People can become exposed to this pathogen through multiple routes such as handling the contaminated products, contact with pets that have eaten contaminated products and/or contact with surfaces that have touched contaminated food, such as bowls, utensils, or countertops. Risk of human illness from Listeria monocytogenes contaminated pet food increases if people do not thoroughly wash their hands after handling the food or having contact with their pet, or by not thoroughly cleaning contaminated surfaces.

Healthy people infected with Listeria monocytogenes may experience some or all of the following symptoms: nausea, vomiting, aches, fever and diarrhea. Listeria monocytogenes infections can spread through the bloodstream to the nervous system (including the brain), resulting in meningitis and other potentially fatal illnesses. Pregnant women are especially susceptible to Listeria infection, which can result in miscarriage. The young, the elderly, and people with weak immune systems are more vulnerable to infection. People exhibiting signs of Listeria monocytogenes infection after having contact with recalled product(s) or a pet that has eaten recalled product(s) should contact their healthcare providers.

Listeria monocytogenes illnesses in pets are rare, and infected pets may display symptoms such as mild to severe diarrhea, anorexia, fever, nervous, muscular and respiratory signs, miscarriage, depression, shock and death. Pets exposed to contaminated food can be infected without showing symptoms. Infected pets, even if they do not show symptoms, can act as carriers and transfer L. monocytogenes through their feces and saliva into the home environment and to people and other pets in the household. If your pet has eaten the recalled product(s) and has symptoms of Listeria monocytogenes infection, please contact your veterinarian.

The products were distributed directly to consumers in all fifty states and the District of Columbia.

Only products from Lot 21244 are affected, Viva Raw is notifying all customers who were shipped any Turkey or Beef & Turkey for Puppies products between May 16 and June 28, 2024.

No illnesses related to this lot have been reported to date.

The product is distributed as frozen 1 lb bricks in clear vacuum packaging. Please see the attached example of product labels. There are no expiration dates for these products.

Products matching the specific lot number below are being recalled:

The issue was discovered during a facility inspection conducted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and The North Carolina Department of Agriculture (NCDA). The FDA tested samples of Viva Turkey for Dogs and found samples from Lot 21244 were positive for Listeria monocytogenes. All products produced in Lot 21244 were slated for destruction. However, we have since learned some of the product from this lot was inadvertently released from the warehouse.

If you find that you have products from Lot 21244, please contact Viva Raw at [email protected] for a refund on any remaining product — you should then destroy the food in a way that children, pets and wildlife cannot access. Do not feed the recalled product to pets or any other animals.

FDA recommends humans do not touch the contaminated food product with bare hands. While wearing gloves or using paper towels, place the contaminated food in a sealed plastic bag and throw it in the garbage. Areas that may have come in contact with the contaminated product should be sanitized. Do not sell or donate the recalled products.