Becton Dickinson Recalls Columbia Agar with 5% Sheep Blood Due to Listeria
Becton Dickinson & Co. is recalling Columbia Agar with 5% Sheep Blood due to low-level Listeria monocytogenes contamination. The product is a non-sterile culture medium distributed worldwide.
The agency’s classification
FDA (Devices): Class II
Class II is a situation in which use of or exposure to a violative product may cause temporary or medically reversible adverse health consequences, or where the probability of serious adverse health consequences is remote.
This is the agency’s own classification, taken from its notice. The severity score below is our assessment, not the agency’s. How recall classes work
What this means for you
Our assessment, not the agency’s: severity 3/5 (High).
Real risk of harm even if no illness or injury has been reported yet. Stop using the product and follow the agency's guidance.
Our severity reasoning: The recall involves a high-risk pathogen (Listeria monocytogenes) without reported illness, which corresponds to a High severity score per the rubric.
Plain-English summary
Becton Dickinson & Co. is recalling 775 cases of Columbia Agar with 5% Sheep Blood, a general-purpose culture medium used for the growth and recovery of fastidious microbial species. The recall involves Catalogue # 221263 with Lot #4099228.
The recall was initiated due to a low level of surface and subsurface contamination of Listeria monocytogenes on 9 lots of the non-sterile prepared plated media. The contamination is typically visible immediately upon removal from packaging and is observed as 1-3 CFUs per plate when present.
The affected product was distributed worldwide, including the United States (nationwide including Puerto Rico), Belgium, Canada, the Philippines, Singapore, and Taiwan. Users should stop using the affected product and contact Becton Dickinson & Co. for further instructions.
The recalled product
- Product
- Columbia Agar with 5% Sheep Blood Columbia Agar with 5% Sheep Blood is a general purpose culture medium used for the growth and recovery of fastidious microbial species.
- Manufacturer
- Becton Dickinson & Co.
- Hazard
- Affected units
- 775
Is your product affected?
Check your packaging against the codes below. If any of them match, the product is part of this recall.
Lot numbers (1)
- Catalogue # 221263 with Lot #4099228
Distribution
Part of a larger recall action
This product is one of 3 recalled by Becton Dickinson & Co. under a single FDA (Devices) recall action. The agency files each product separately, so the size of the action is not visible from this page alone.
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