When buying butter, you typically don’t say, “I’ll take the one that may have feces in it.” That’s why finding elevated levels of coliform bacteria found in Cabot Creamery butter has prompted a butter recall. Cabot’s parent company, Agri-Mark, is voluntarily recalling 186 cases or 1,701 pounds of its Extra Creamy Premium Butter, Sea Salted butter, according to a report from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Most coliform bacteria don’t cause disease themselves. But since they are present in the digestive tracts of various animals including humans, they are considered “indicator organisms,” indicators that feces may be present. In other words, poop there is. It’s not clear how much poop there is in this butter. But there are reasons why it’s not great to eat poop, any amount of poop.
Butter Recall Affects 7 States
The specific product in question is the eight-ounce version, which comes in a pair of four-ounce sticks. Products included in the recall have a “best by” date of September 9, 2025, a lot number of 090925-055 and an item number of 2038 on their packages. So check your package, meaning your butter package, to see whether it is included in the recall. If it is, then the best by date for this butter should be “never.” You should either discard or return the butter.
Cabot Creamery has issued an announcement that said the following: “Agri-Mark has identified the cause and has taken the appropriate internal actions to address it. No other products were affected. Agri-Mark is dedicated to food safety and producing quality products and is always monitoring its products for compliance.”
The recall, which was announced on March 26, should affect seven states across the Northeast and South: Vermont, New York, Pennsylvania, Maine, Connecticut, New Hampshire and Arkansas. The FDA considers this a Class III recall, which means that consuming the product will “not likely cause adverse health consequences.”
Cabot Creamery also indicated that it has “successfully recovered 99.5% of the lot of the recalled product before it was sold to consumers. A small amount —17 retail packages (8.5 lbs.) — was sold to consumers in Vermont.”
Butter Recall Due To Elevated Levels Of ‘Indicator Organisms’
It’s common to test food and water supplies for coliforms because they tend to be relatively easier to identify and present in larger numbers than more dangerous microorganisms found in the gut. It’s currently not feasible to test for all the many, many different types of bacteria and other microorganisms that may be found in the intestines. Yep, no matter how alone you may feel at a given time, you are never truly alone.
Not all coliform bacteria are completely harmless. Coliform bacteria actually encompass five different groups of bacteria, including Escherichia coli. While many types of E. coli aren’t going to cause problems because they are normal parts of your gut microbiome, some strains of E. coli, such as 0157:H7, can cause badness. For example, I’ve written in Forbes previously about 0157:H7 outbreaks linked to contaminated Romaine lettuce and raw cucumbers.
The other problem is that coliforms come from not-always-so-great neighborhoods: namely intestines. While intestines may have lots of friendly microorganisms, intestines can have pathogens too. A pathogen is a microorganism that can cause some type of disease.
The presence of coliforms in water or food means that there’s a good chance someone’s poop somehow got in there, although coliforms can be present in soil and plant material as well. And no one can assure that their poop is safe to eat. If someone tries to offer you such assurance, especially in an unsolicited manner, eating dinner at that person’s place may not be the best idea.
So, butter beware. Check to see whether your butter is part of this butter recall. If you accidentally ingested the butter, you won’t necessarily get sick. But you mau want to monitor your symptoms and contact your doctor if you have any concerns. Butter safe than sorry.
