Eight Sick, One Dead in Three-Year Listeria Outbreak Linked to Soft Cheese
A multistate, multi-year Listeria monocytogenes outbreak linked to requeson, a soft, ricotta-like cheese, has sickened eight people in three states, resulting in seven hospitalizations and one death.
The cheese was produced by Clover Hill Dairy LLC and affected products have been recalled. At this time, there is not enough evidence for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to determine if the recalled cheese can explain the entire outbreak.
According to information from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), clinical samples were collected between March 6, 2023 and May 9, 2026. Of the seven patients interviewed, five reported eating cheese, and two specifically identified Clover Hill Dairy-brand cheese. Illnesses have been reported in New York, Maryland, and Virginia.
On May 13, 2026, the Suffolk County Health Department (SCHD) notified the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets (NYS AGM) of two related L. monocytogenes illnesses within one family who had purchased food from a local retailer in Brentwood, New York. The following day, the New York State Department of Health (NYS DOH) confirmed that both patients had consumed requeson cheese purchased at the Brentwood retailer. NYS AGM investigators tested five cheese samples collected from the retailer and found L. monocytogenes in one sample of requeson that had been repacked by the retailer. Whole genome sequencing (WGS) matched the strain of L. monocytogenes found in the requeson cheese to the clinical strain from the two New York patients who reported purchasing cheese from the Brentwood retailer.
On May 27, 2026, NYS AGM conducted an inspection at the retailer's cheese distributor, which identified Clover Hill Dairy LLC of Mechanicsville, Maryland as the requeson cheese manufacturer. A sample collected from an unopened 18-pound sealed bucket of requeson manufactured by Clover Hill Dairy also tested positive for L. monocytogenes. WGS analysis of this isolate is pending.
On June 3, 2026, Clover Hill Dairy issued a voluntary recall of its requeson/soft ricotta products.
The Maryland Department of Health has suspended Clover Hill Dairy’s operating license, issued a consumer advisory, and is conducting a follow-up evaluation in cooperation with the facility.
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Update, June 10, 2026: The patient count in this outbreak has grown to nine. Of the 8 people interviewed, 6 reported eating any cheese, and two specifically identified Clover Hill as the brand.
Additionally, on June 5, Nelson & Isa Lacteos LLC of Bay Shore, New York, a distributor of Clover Hill Dairy requeson cheese, initiated a recall of 1-pound (lb) packages of requeson cheese sold in plastic clam-shell containers to retail locations in New York from May 15 to May 28, 2026. The recall was initiated after NYS AGM detected L. monocytogenes in a sample collected from an unopened 18-lb plastic container of Clover Hill Dairy requeson cheese with a sell-by date of June 14 and batch #2AA051526. WGS confirmed the L. monocytogenes strain found in the sample of requeson cheese matches the outbreak strain.
Update, June 14, 2026: Six product samples of requeson cheese have tested positive for L. monocytogenes matching the outbreak strain. Additionally, one environmental sample, collected by Maryland state partners, tested positive for the outbreak strain. The Maryland Department of Health has announced an expanded consumer advisory for all cheese products made by Clover Hill Dairy.
Update, June 25, 2026: Based on epidemiological information collected by CDC, a total of 12 people infected with the outbreak strain have now been reported from four states. Clinical samples were collected on dates ranging from March 6, 2023, to June 2, 2026. Of the ten people interviewed, nine reported eating any cheese, and two people reported eating requeson made by Clover Hill Dairy. There have been ten hospitalizations and one death reported.
Update, June 29, 2026: At present, six requeson cheese samples and one environmental sample collected by the Maryland Department of Health have tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes and matched the outbreak strain. On June 24, a second environmental sample from Clover Hill Dairy LLC, collected by Maryland state partners, also tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes and matched the outbreak strain.
On June 26, La Ceiba Foods Latin Market Inc issued a recall announcement for requeson cheese that was repackaged as Requesón Salvadoreño (Ricotta Style Salvadorean Cheese) and Requesón Mexicano (Mexican Cottage Cheese) products marketed under the La Colonia and Selectos Latinos brands and distributed to supermarkets, retail stores, and restaurants in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington D.C. between May 11 and June 1, 2026.
