A recall campaign has been launched on Cantal farmhouse cheeses labelled Le Chasteau, following the discovery of 72 cases of salmonellosis linked to this cheese factory, the government announced in a press release on Wednesday.
"This recall concerns all Le Chasteau farmhouse cheeses from GAEC Deflisque, all batches, all use-by dates (UBD), marketed from March 2024 onwards," even those stored in the freezer, the Ministries of Health and Agriculture jointly declared.
These infections are linked to the ingestion of cheeses resembling Saint-Nectaire but not having the protected designation of origin, produced in Cantal by the Deflisque joint agricultural exploitation group (GAEC), between the beginning of March and the beginning of August 2024.
Surveys of patients (more than half of whom were in Puy-de-Dome, Correze and Creuse) led to the cheese factory, which was closed "urgently" on July 23. Samples confirmed the contamination on August 1. The recall was published on August 7 on the government website Rappelconso, for all cheeses produced by this cheese factory.
Questioned by AFP, the owner of the cheese factory denied responsibility: "we are never safe from a health problem", but "they have no proof against us", he declared, adding that he had hired a lawyer.
These cheeses were sold in particular on markets in Puy-de-Dome, according to the government.
Salmonellosis causes sudden diarrhea or vomiting, with headache and fever within 6 to 72 hours after consuming a contaminated product.
In young children, pregnant women, the elderly or people with weakened immune systems, the infection can be more severe or even fatal.
People who have consumed the cheese and who have symptoms are advised to consult a doctor.
Cases have also been recorded in New Aquitaine, Burgundy-Franche-Comté, Centre-Val de Loire, Pays-de-la-Loire, Brittany, Grand-Est and Occitanie.
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