About the Affected Product
The product covered by the alert is DISH by Blue Apron Cheesy Chicken Mac with Vegetables, a 13.05-ounce ready-to-eat meal in a plastic tray bearing lot codes 25240 and 25247, produced at establishment P-3081. The product was distributed through the Blue Apron meal delivery service.
Latest Updates
FSIS issued the public health alert on October 8, 2025, after the riced cauliflower ingredient in the product tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes [1]. FSIS classified the action as a public health alert rather than a formal recall because the products were no longer available for sale at the time of the notification [2]. No confirmed illnesses had been reported as of the alert date [3].
FreshRealm as the Shared Production Source
FreshRealm of Linden, New Jersey, is the contract manufacturer that produced the Blue Apron meal and was identified by FSIS as the recalling firm. The same October 8, 2025 alert also covered a second FreshRealm-produced product — BALANCE by Marley Spoon BBQ Sauce Beef Meatballs with Cheesy Cauliflower — distributed through a different branded meal delivery service but manufactured using the same contaminated riced cauliflower ingredient.
The simultaneous alert across two branded products from a single contract manufacturer illustrates how ingredient-level contamination at a shared production facility can move undetected into finished meals sold under entirely different consumer-facing brands. A Blue Apron subscriber and a Marley Spoon subscriber receiving meals from the same FreshRealm facility in the same production window were exposed to the same Listeria-positive ingredient without any visible connection between their products.
The Listeria Risk in Ready-to-Eat Meals
Listeria monocytogenes is particularly dangerous in ready-to-eat products because they are consumed without a cooking step that would otherwise destroy the pathogen. FSIS specifically advised consumers not to eat the affected meals even after reheating, noting that reheating may not fully eliminate the risk of cross-contamination within the tray.
FSIS also advised consumers who had already eaten the meals to monitor their health for symptoms of listeriosis for up to 70 days — a directive that reflects Listeria’s unusually long incubation window, which can extend from three days to ten weeks after exposure. Listeriosis causes fever, muscle aches, stiff neck, headache, confusion, and gastrointestinal illness, and can progress to life-threatening infection in pregnant women, newborns, the elderly, and immunocompromised individuals.
A Public Health Alert, Not a Formal Recall
FSIS’s decision to issue a public health alert rather than a mandatory recall reflects the procedural reality that the products had already exited commerce by the time the contamination was confirmed. The alert designation does not diminish the underlying liability analysis: consumers who received and ate the affected product before FreshRealm identified the contamination had no warning and no opportunity to make an informed decision about whether to consume it.
Reported Illnesses
No confirmed illnesses were reported in connection with the DISH by Blue Apron Cheesy Chicken Mac with Vegetables as of the October 8, 2025 alert. Given Listeria’s extended incubation period, individuals who consumed the product in the weeks before the alert may not have connected a subsequent illness to this source at the time symptoms appeared.
Can I File a Lawsuit?
If you developed listeriosis after consuming DISH by Blue Apron Cheesy Chicken Mac with Vegetables from either of the recalled lot codes, you may have a product liability claim against FreshRealm and potentially Blue Apron. Contact an attorney promptly, as state filing deadlines apply.
What to Do Now
Do not eat any product bearing lot code 25240 or 25247 from the DISH by Blue Apron Cheesy Chicken Mac with Vegetables line — discard it immediately. Contact FreshRealm at 1-888-244-1562 or customerservice@freshrealm.com, or reach the USDA Meat & Poultry Hotline at 1-888-674-6854 (Monday–Friday, 10 a.m.–6 p.m. ET).
References
1. https://www.fsis.usda.gov/recalls-alerts/fsis-issues-public-health-alert-ready-eat-meals-containing-riced-cauliflower-may-be
2. https://foodpoisoningbulletin.com/2025/blue-apron-and-marley-spoon-meals-recalled-for-listeria/
3. https://www.consumeraffairs.com/news/public-health-alert-issued-for-some-freshrealm-ready-to-eat-meals-100925.html