Maryland warns of Clover Hill cheese recall over listeria risk

Baltimore households should check refrigerators for Clover Hill Dairy requesón and soft ricotta, including jalapeño and other flavors, and any package tied to plant number 24-128. Maryland health officials said the June 3 advisory covered products sold from the dairy’s retail market, at farmers markets and through third-party distributors in Maryland, New York and Virginia, and told consumers, retailers and restaurants not to eat, sell or serve them. The state also said some cheese may be relabeled under a different brand, and it suspended the dairy’s operating license because of the public health risk while a follow-up evaluation continues.

The warning is urgent because listeria can survive and grow under refrigeration, and soft cheese can sit in a fridge long enough to be forgotten. Maryland said symptoms can start with fever, muscle aches, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, then progress to headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance or convulsions. CDC says the infection is especially harmful to pregnant women, newborns, adults 65 and older, and people with weakened immune systems.

The recall is now part of a broader multistate accountability test. Food Safety News reported eight illnesses across Maryland, New York and Virginia, seven hospitalizations and one death, with samples collected from March 6, 2023, through May 9, 2026. On May 27, New York agriculture officials identified Clover Hill Dairy LLC as the manufacturer after a sample from an unopened 18-pound sealed bucket tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes, with whole-genome sequencing still pending. Maryland’s outbreak lab says it tests foodborne outbreak samples and works with state and multistate investigations, a reminder that the real question for Baltimore is whether recalled cheese left store cases as quickly as the warning reached city shoppers.