Listeria contamination found in smoked sausage

ATLANTA - State agriculture officials are requesting that packages of smoked sausage be pulled from store shelves after food scientists found a potentially harmful bacteria inside a sample.

Agriculture Commissioner Tommy Irvin says the bacteria listeria monocytogenes was found in a sample of Roger Wood Preferred Recipe Beef Smoked Sausage.

The 16-ounce package was marked 469-D and was labeled ``Sell by May 13, 2005.''

Irvin says the Savannah-based company has notified stores to remove the sausage from shelves and that anyone who purchased the product may return it for a refund.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that about 500 die from listeriosis each year and 2,500 become seriously ill.

The disease primarily affects pregnant women, newborns, and adults with weakened immune systems.

Symptoms include fever, muscle aches and sometimes diarrhea and nausea.