OTTAWA, ONTARIO -- (Marketwire) -- 01/29/13 -- The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and Canada Safeway Limited are warning the public not to consume the LifeForce Foods brand Sprouts described below because they may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes.

All codes of the following LifeForce Foods brand sprouts, product of USA, packaged in plastic clamshell containers of 85 grams, are affected by this alert:

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Product                                                                  UPC
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Brocco Sprouts                                               8 51042 00400 2
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Spicy sprouts                                                8 51042 00401 9
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Alfalfa sprouts                                              8 51042 00402 6
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These products have been distributed through Canada Safeway stores in British Columbia only.

There have been no reported illnesses associated with the consumption of these products.

Food contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes may not look or smell spoiled. Consumption of food contaminated with these bacteria may cause listeriosis, a foodborne illness. Listeriosis can cause high fever, severe headache, neck stiffness and nausea. Pregnant women, the elderly and people with weakened immune systems are particularly at risk. Infected pregnant women may experience only a mild, flu-like illness, however, infections during pregnancy can lead to premature delivery, infection of the newborn, or even stillbirth.

The importer, Canada Safeway Limited, Calgary, AB, is voluntarily recalling the affected product from the marketplace. The CFIA is monitoring the effectiveness of the recall.

For more information, consumers and industry can call one of the following numbers:

Canada Safeway Limited at 403-730-3511;

CFIA at 1-800-442-2342 / TTY 1-800-465-7735 (8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern time, Monday to Friday).

For more information on foodborne pathogens, visit the Causes of Food Poisoning web page at: http://inspection.gc.ca/food_poisoning.

For information on all food recalls, visit the CFIA's Food Recall Report at: http://active.inspection.gc.ca/eng/corp/recarapp_dbe.asp.

To find out more about receiving recalls by e-mail, and other food safety facts, visit: www.foodsafety.gc.ca. Food and consumer product recalls are also available at http://www.healthycanadians.gc.ca.