Urgent recall of Scots cheese over E.coli risk, as shops put up notices amid fear of kidney failure

Health chiefs have urgently recalled a popular Scottish blue cheese over fears some batches may be contaminated with deadly bacteria.

Food Standards Scotland warned the Isle of Mull Cheese’s Hebridean Blue Cheese may contain Shiga Toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC), which can give people severe food poisoning and potentially lethal kidney problems.

No other Isle of Mull Cheese products are known to be affected.

Symptoms of the extremely infectious STEC bacteria include vomiting, diarrhoea, stomach cramps that can last up to two weeks.

In around 15 per cent of cases, the bacteria can cause haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS), a life-threatening condition that can lead to kidney failure.

Children under five and other vulnerable groups including the elderly and the immunocompromised are at the highest risk of succumbing to HUS.

Notices will be displayed in stores that sell the cheese, including Edinburgh delicatessen Valvona and Crolla, that say: ‘If you have bought the above product do not eat it. Instead, return it to the store from where it was bought for a full refund.’

The recall notice affects all pack sizes with a best before date of April 10, 2025, and batch code 8051224.

The Isle of Mull Cheese’s Hebridean Blue may contain bacteria that causes severe food poisoning and potentially lethal kidney problems.

Symptoms of the extremely infectious STEC bacteria include vomiting, diarrhoea and stomach cramps that can last up to two weeks.

Hebridean Blue Cheese is made from raw cow’s milk and typically matures for around eight weeks. 

It is hand crafted by the Reade family at Sgriob-Ruadh Farm on the Isle of Mull, who describe it as ‘one of Scotland’s most iconic cheeses’ and the ‘bluest of the blue cheeses.’

The company said in response to the ‘do not eat’ warning: ‘Most varieties of cheese in the world are produced from raw milk.

‘It has been used to preserve food for hundreds, if not thousands of years.

‘Producing raw milk cheese is tough. The cheese being recalled would have passed normal testing as no pathogens were found using agar plates.

‘Cooking the cheese will totally remove any possibility of illness. We have withdrawn all Hebridean Blue cheese for further testing.’

The news comes after a recent string of recalls due to E. coli contamination.

More than 100 people in the UK were struck down by the infection in under a fortnight last year with contaminated lettuce in sandwiches eventually found to be the cause.

Seven cases of HUS were reported at the time and there was one death.

More than 60 sandwiches, wraps and salads sold in 11 major shops were given ‘do not eat’ alerts as precautionary measure.

Experts believe the texture of lettuce makes it more prone to being contaminated with E. coli though water tainted with infected animal faeces and the fact it’s not cooked, which would usually kill off bugs, increasing the risk.

While the majority of known cases are thought to have been from consumption from infected food, two are believed to have been passed from person to person, for example parents caring for children who caught the bug.

People have been advised to contact NHS 111 or their GP if they or their children show any symptoms of E. coli infection.