The USDA says testing will reveal if bacteria findings in the Marketside-branded products are connected to a larger outbreak event.
The bacteria Listeria has been in the center of several prominent food recalls just in the past few weeks, impacting everything from frozen veggies to Costco-sold fish. A new report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) now says a multi-state Listeria outbreak from June, at the time affecting chicken fettuccine alfredo meals sold at Kroger and Walmart, has led to a surprising discovery involving more pasta from Walmart.
According to the late-breaking Thursday notice from the agency, an undisclosed number of single serving, ready-to-eat pasta meals—branded as Marketside Linguine with Beef Meatballs & Marinara Sauce and reportedly “shipped to Walmart locations nationwide”—tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes. Marketside is a private brand label owned by Walmart.
The FSIS states that samples of “FDA-regulated, pre-cooked pasta” were collected due to the previously mentioned Listeria outbreak—an incident that has so far caused 16 hospitalizations and three deaths across 13 states, per a U.S. Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report. Regarding the Marketside linguine meal: “The test confirmed that the linguine pasta was positive” for Listeria monocytogenes (Lm). Further testing is now underway to determine if the Listeria present in the linguine product is genetically related to the recent outbreak strain.
Sold in 12-ounce clear plastic trays with a red label, the affected pasta dishes bear the establishment numbers “EST. 50784” or “EST. 47718” inside the USDA mark of inspection. The alert is also limited to select “Best if used by” dates:
- September 22, 2025
- September 24, 2025
- September 25, 2025
- September 29, 2025
- September 30, 2025
- October 01, 2025
Product images were also provided.
Listeria monocytogenes is known to cause Listeriosis, a potentially life-threatening infection that most harshly affects seniors, infants, pregnant women, and people with weakened immune systems. In addition to causing miscarriage and stillbirth in pregnant women, listeriosis can cause “fever, muscle aches, headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance and convulsions sometimes preceded by diarrhea or other gastrointestinal symptoms,” the alert states. “Persons in the higher-risk categories who experience flu-like symptoms within two months after eating contaminated food should seek medical care,” urges the FSIS.
As the affected pasta could currently be in consumers’ refrigerators or freezers, the FSIS says people should take care to not eat it. Instead, “These products should be thrown away or returned to the place of purchase.” The agency also cautions that “additional products may be added,” encouraging consumers to check back for potential future updates.
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