Walmart's Lemon Alfredo Fettuccine Recall Expands to Every Lot Over Listeria Contamination

What Happened

Gias Foods, Inc., a New York-based supplier, has expanded its recall of Bettergoods brand Authentic Italian Lemon Alfredo Fettuccine to cover every lot code the company shipped nationwide, according to a Food and Drug Administration alert posted Thursday, October 1. The frozen pasta, sold exclusively at Walmart stores, is packaged in 22-ounce yellow plastic bags under UPC 194346442706.

The FDA originally announced a narrower recall on September 15, covering just two lots — L6079C and L6080C — with expiration dates of September 19 and September 20, 2027, according to the FDA's company announcement and Ground News. Thursday's expansion scraps the lot-specific limits entirely. Every bag with that UPC code is now covered, regardless of when it was purchased or what date is printed on the package.

How the Contamination Was Found

The problem surfaced through routine sampling, not a consumer complaint. Both the Washington State Department of Agriculture and the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services independently tested finished product and flagged the possible presence of Listeria monocytogenes, according to the FDA and Food Safety News. Gias Foods has halted all distribution of the product and says it is working with the FDA to pin down where in its process the contamination occurred.

As of this week, no root cause has been identified publicly, and no illnesses linked to the pasta have been reported, according to the FDA. Given that listeriosis symptoms can take weeks to appear, the absence of reports is not proof the product is safe to eat.

Why Officials Jumped to Every Lot

Last month the product was assigned a Class I designation, the FDA's most serious risk category, defined as "a reasonable probability that the use of or exposure to a violative product will cause serious adverse health consequences or death," per the agency's own classification language cited by Newsweek.

Neither Gias Foods nor the FDA has published a detailed explanation of what changed between the September 15 announcement and Thursday's expansion. What's documented is that regulators and the company continue to investigate. Until they can isolate exactly where and when the contamination entered the process, pulling only two lots leaves open the possibility that other batches were affected too. The source of contamination remains unresolved.

The Health Risk

Listeria monocytogenes can cause listeriosis, an infection that is especially dangerous for pregnant women, newborns, adults over 65, and anyone with a weakened immune system, according to the FDA and Food Safety News. Infected pregnant women may have only mild, flu-like symptoms themselves, but the infection can cause miscarriage, stillbirth, or infection in a newborn.

Food Safety News notes that symptoms can take up to 70 days to appear after exposure, meaning anyone who ate the pasta in recent weeks should watch for fever, muscle aches, severe headache, neck stiffness, nausea, or diarrhea well into the coming months. Diagnosis requires a specific lab test because listeriosis symptoms can mimic other illnesses.

Freezing does not kill the bacteria. It stays dormant and viable in frozen food until the product thaws or is improperly heated, which matters here because this is a frozen product with a shelf life running into 2027.

What Walmart and Gias Foods Are Telling Customers

A Walmart spokesperson told Newsweek: "Safety is a top priority. When notified of recalls, we move quickly to remove the impacted products from our stores and implement a sales block at registers and online. We are working closely with our supplier, and customers who have this should discontinue use and follow the recall instructions."

Gias Foods is directing anyone who bought the product to return it to the place of purchase for a full refund. Customers with questions can email sales@giasfoods.com or call 917-675-4890; the company says it will respond to emails within 24 hours, according to FOX 32 Chicago and LiveNow from FOX.

Part of a Busier Year for Recalls

This recall lands amid a string of 2026 food safety actions. Newsweek points to a separate recall from Star Meat Delivery Inc. covering roughly 167,639 pounds of raw beef, pork, and goat produced without federal inspection. Food Safety News also logged a recall of 37,481 units of sprouting seeds from Todd's Seeds LLC over possible Salmonella and E. coli contamination, plus an expanded recall of frozen organic berries from Chile tied to an E. coli outbreak.

For now, the open question is a narrow but important one: Gias Foods and the FDA have not said when the contamination investigation will conclude or whether a specific point in the production process has been identified. Anyone with the Bettergoods Lemon Alfredo Fettuccine in their freezer should check the UPC on the package now rather than wait for that answer.