About the Affected Product
The product subject to the public health alert is Marketside Linguine with Beef Meatballs & Marinara Sauce, sold in 12-ounce clear plastic tray packages bearing establishment number EST. 50784 or EST. 47718 inside the USDA mark of inspection. The affected packages carry best-if-used-by dates of SEP 22, SEP 24, SEP 25, SEP 29, SEP 30, and OCT 01, 2025.
Latest Updates
FSIS issued the public health alert on approximately September 26, 2025, after Listeria monocytogenes was found in the pre-cooked pasta component used in the linguine dish — a pasta ingredient regulated by the FDA rather than FSIS, sourced from Nate’s Fine Foods of Roseville, California [1]. FreshRealm advised Walmart to pull the meals from store shelves and stated that the detected strain matched the outbreak strain linked to its recalled chicken fettuccine Alfredo products from the June 2025 recall [2]. Preliminary genome sequencing linked the contamination to a multistate Listeria outbreak that had spread to 15 states, resulting in at least 20 reported illnesses and four deaths at the time of reporting [3].
Contamination Traced to a Pasta Ingredient — Not the Meatballs
The Listeria contamination in this product did not originate in the beef meatballs or the marinara sauce — it was detected in the pre-cooked linguine pasta, an ingredient supplied by Nate’s Fine Foods and regulated by the FDA rather than FSIS. A consumer purchasing a Walmart heat-and-eat meal had no way of knowing that the pasta inside it came from a facility whose product would later test positive for a pathogen already linked to deaths in a parallel FreshRealm recall.
FreshRealm has stated its position that the Listeria source was likely a third-party ingredient supplier — a position now supported by the detection in the pasta component. When a finished ready-to-eat product is contaminated through an upstream ingredient, product liability exposure extends from the downstream assembler to the ingredient supplier whose product introduced the pathogen into the production chain.
A Public Health Alert, Not a Formal Recall
FSIS issued a public health alert rather than a formal recall because the agency cannot compel a voluntary recall when the contamination originates in an FDA-regulated ingredient used in an FSIS-regulated finished product. A public health alert carries the same consumer warning and the same instruction to discard or return the product, but it is not classified or tracked as a recall and may receive less public attention than a formal FSIS recall action.
Consumers holding packages with the affected best-by dates may not have seen the alert — particularly those who purchased the product before the alert was issued and stored it at home without checking for subsequent food safety notices.
The Same Outbreak Strain Behind Earlier Deaths
The Listeria strain detected in the Marketside linguine was genetically linked through genome sequencing to the same outbreak strain identified in FreshRealm’s June 2025 recall of Home Chef Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo and Marketside Grilled Chicken Alfredo products. That outbreak — spanning at least 15 states — resulted in 17 to 20 confirmed illnesses, three to four deaths, and at least one fetal loss before the June 2025 recall was issued.
The appearance of the same outbreak strain in a second FreshRealm product line, months after the June recall, indicates that the contamination source was not fully eliminated when the earlier products were removed from distribution.
Reported Illnesses
No confirmed illnesses had been reported specifically in connection with the Marketside Linguine with Beef Meatballs & Marinara Sauce as of the time the public health alert was issued. Given Listeria’s incubation period of up to ten weeks and the product’s short best-by window, illnesses associated with this product may have been attributed to the broader ongoing outbreak rather than specifically to the linguine meal.
Can I File a Lawsuit?
If you developed a Listeria infection after consuming Marketside Linguine with Beef Meatballs & Marinara Sauce bearing establishment number EST. 50784 or EST. 47718 with a best-by date between September 22 and October 1, 2025, you may have product liability claims against FreshRealm and Nate’s Fine Foods. Contact an attorney promptly, as state filing deadlines apply.
What to Do Now
Do not eat any Marketside Linguine with Beef Meatballs & Marinara Sauce bearing EST. 50784 or EST. 47718 with a best-if-used-by date of SEP 22, SEP 24, SEP 25, SEP 29, SEP 30, or OCT 01, 2025 — discard the product in a sealed bag or return it to Walmart for a full refund. Contact Nate’s Fine Foods at 916-677-7303 (Monday–Friday, 9 a.m.–4 p.m. PT) with questions, or call the USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline at 1-888-674-6854 (Monday–Friday, 10 a.m.–6 p.m. ET).
References
1. https://foodpoisoningbulletin.com/2025/health-alert-for-marketside-linguine-with-meatballs-for-listeria/
2. https://abc7news.com/post/listeria-found-walmart-meatball-meals-may-linked-deadly-fettuccine-outbreak/17887496/
3. https://www.valleynewslive.com/2025/10/04/recalled-ready-to-eat-pasta-meals-may-be-linked-multistate-deadly-listeria-outbreak/