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A deadly outbreak of Listeria monocytogenes linked to prepared pasta meals is continuing to spread across the United States. Since September 25, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have identified three new states with infections, bringing the total number to 18 states. The agencies first reported food recalls associated with the outbreak in June. In the last month, seven new cases have been identified, alongside six new hospitalizations. That brings their respective totals to 27 cases and 25 hospitalizations since the outbreak began. Two more deaths have also been reported, with six deaths recorded in total. There is also one reported instance of fetal loss during a pregnancy-associated illness. Where has the Listeria outbreak spread? The outbreak is widespread, with states largely reporting infections in the West, Southeast, and Midwest regions. The CDC has produced a map of where Listeria cases have occurred. Below is a full list of all impacted states: California Florida Hawaii Illinois Indiana Louisiana Michigan Minnesota Missouri North Carolina Nevada Ohio Oregon South Carolina Texas Utah Virginia Washington window.addEventListener("message",function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r,i=0;r=e[i];i++)if(r.contentWindow===a.source){var d=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";r.style.height=d}}}); Which products have been impacted? At least nine different prepared meal products have been recalled in the wake of this outbreak, with major retailers such as Kroger, Trader Joes, and Albertsons being among those that have recalled products. Used-by dates on recalled products now extend to as recent as this week. The FDA has a full list of impacted products along with product images on its website. What Listeria symptoms should I look out for? The outbreak was first discovered in August 2024, but the number of new cases reported as part of the outbreak has increased over the last several weeks, according to a timeline on the CDC website. According to the FDA, a person who becomes infected by Listeria-contaminated food will normally begin exhibiting symptoms within two weeks. However, signs can appear up to 10 weeks later. Mild symptoms of a Listeria infection, known as listeriosis, include: Fever Muscle aches Nausea Tiredness Vomiting A severe form of listeriosis can bring symptoms such as: Confusion Convulsions Headache Loss of balance Stiff neck Individuals who are pregnant, 65 and older, or have weakened immune systems are at greater risk. The CDC directs people to call a healthcare provider immediately if you experience any of the above symptoms after consuming affected foods. Beyond not eating any of the recalled foods you might have purchased, the CDC also says to clean anything that might have touched these foods. These areas could be in the refrigerator, containers, or surfaces. Listeria can live in a fridge and easily spread to other foods or surfaces. What else is there to know? The investigation is ongoing, so its possible that more products will be added to the listeria recall. Watch the FDAs and CDCs dedicated pages for any updates.
Category:
E-Commerce
Think about the last time you made a purchase using your phone. Maybe you were at a coffee shop and when your turn came, you opened your payment app, tapped your phone on the payment device, grabbed your cappuccino, and were done. Quick and easy. Maybe too quick and easy. Did the coffee shop miss a chance to engage with you? Did Mastercard miss an opportunity to show how their brand made this priceless moment possible? Did you miss an opportunity to teach your 8-year-old daughter a lesson on the value of money? As business leaders in an increasingly digital landscape, weve learned to treat friction as a dirty word. Remove friction at all costs is the rallying cry of every customer experience and user experience design team. But what have we lost in the quest to reduce cart abandonments or boost transaction speed? By putting speed and efficiency above all else, are we missing opportunities to build connections between consumers and brandsand perhaps each other? Have we lost the space to reflect on the quality of a product, or the substance of an experience? Are we unable to take a moment to think about a choice we just made and wonder whether there are better ones? Not all friction is bad Friction, in any of its many forms, can be a positive forcefor teaching, adding value, creating deeper engagement, and fostering human connection. A process thats too quick and simple may not offer enough choice, lead to poorly informed decisions, or might even erode trust. An experience with the right kind of friction in the right amount can prove more valuable in the long run. Theres a well-known behavioral science principle commonly known as the IKEA effect. Referencing the global home furnishings giant, it refers to a phenomenon where consumers place more value on an item theyve invested time and energy in creating, which is why you refuse to throw away that $30 bookshelf you spent four hours putting together for your first apartment. The experience of building IKEA furniture is a form of friction that fosters ownership and personal value, even if the intrinsic value of the item is low. To be fair, our obsession with frictionless experiences stems from a legitimate fear: In a world of infinite choice, a single moment of frustration can send a customer to a competitor. But this relentless pursuit of speed and simplicity often results in a sort of non-experience, a homogeneous market where every brand looks and feels the same. The challenge is to find the right places to re-introduce friction, slowing the process to build and differentiate your brand, deepen customer relationships, or drive sales. You can start by dissecting your customer experiences and looking for three types of friction: imagined, demanded and created. 1. Imagined friction In our push towards a frictionless world, many customer experience designers have removed frictions that were never really customer challenges. QR codes were introduced as a means of contactless ordering at restaurants during the pandemic and many still remain in use. The ongoing justification is that it saves costs, allows for changes, and reduces staffing requirements. While these might all be true, its no longer a customer need, or a friction point in restaurant dining experiences. In reality, restaurant orders tend to be larger with physical menus because it allows for collaborative viewing and discussion between diners and provides servers an opportunity to upsell and encourage more human interaction between staff and guests. QR codes, on the other hand, only solve an imaginary friction, and have arguably made the restaurant experience poorer. 2. Demanded friction Almost every hotel chain has introduced digital, keyless check-in that can be done from your phone prior to your arrival at the property. At the same time, most hotel chains will acknowledge that the adoption of these technologies has been underwhelming. Most guests prefer to wait in line to check in, wanting to make eye contact with a hotel employee, announcing their arrival to a human, and perhaps chatting their way to a room with a view. The friction of a human interaction adds a degree of value, comfort, and reassurance. Brands should examine their customer journeys to discover points where efficiency and digitization remove essential customer connection points, including connection points customers actually demandeven if it means waiting in line after a six-hour flight! 3. Created friction IKEA isnt the only brand creating friction to their benefit. With more than 1,000 stores, TJ Maxx is one of the largest clothing retailers in the country. It employs what it calls a treasure hunt strategy, making shoppers rifle through an enormous selection of roughly organized goods to find bargains. The assortment constantly changes, and categories are merely notions: Youre very likely to find a soup ladle next to a decorative candle. But their loyalists, affectionately called Maxxinistas, fight through the friction to discover a hidden haul. Reintroducing the right kind of friction There are different kinds of friction: cognitive, emotional, and interactive. In our rush to make everything effortlessly interactive, weve brushed over the cognitive and emotionalthe humanaspects of friction. But research shows that customers are drawn to brands that align with their identity and values, not just those that offer the quickest transaction. By viewing friction not as a flaw but as a featureor as a moment to be humanbrands can design experiences that are more intentional, more aligned to need and, ultimately, more valuable. While no one would make the argument that the consumer experience world should make things slower, more difficult, or more inefficient, no one would suggest we design things to be less human. The trick is, and will be, to balance an increasingly digitized world with more humanity by creating more opportunities for attention, engagement, and connection. Oscar Yuan is chief strategy + growth officer at Material.
Category:
E-Commerce
We dont talk enough about what doesnt scale. Which is ironic, because we talk about scale constantly. Scale is the shorthand for success in just about every industry. If it cant scale, is it even worth doing? Thats the kind of thinking that floods strategy decks, venture capitalist meetings, and quarterly reviews. But heres the question I keep circling back to: Can it still matter if it doesnt scale? Because Ive seen real impact in spaces where scale wasnt the point. And frankly, it wasnt even possible. THE MYTH OF MASS = MEANING Theres a quiet arrogance baked into how we treat scale, as if the size of a thing is what determines its significance. But some of the most meaningful changes happen in small rooms, not big stages. Think about financial education programs in rural communities. Or credit-building initiatives that are culturally tailored for a single neighborhood. Theyre unpolished, localized, hard to replicateand deeply effective. Yet because they dont lend themselves to scale, theyre often dismissed or deprioritized. Scaling can absolutely expand access. But we shouldnt mistake repeatability for revolution. WHATS LOST IN THE RUSH? Heres what often gets left behind when scale becomes the headline: Nuance. What works in Memphis might not work in Minneapolis. Relevance. One-size-fits-all is rarely true in communities that have historically been overlooked or underserved. Feedback loops. When you scale too quickly, you lose the intimacy that invites honest feedback and real-time course correction. When we chase scale at all costs, we sometimes lose the very texture that made the original idea impactful. Small, sharp, and mighty. THERES POWER IN THE PILOT Ive watched high-touch, hyper-relevant initiatives change the trajectory of communitiesinitiatives that no one would label scalable. The FICO Educational Analytics Challenge is a great example. It started with a small set of universities, giving students hands-on exposure to real-world AI and data science problems. The goal wasnt to reach millions overnight. It was to invest deeply in students who otherwise might never get that kind of access. The early results were powerful. Students walked away with skills that shifted their career aspirations. One university even added a data science minor after participating. Those are outcomes that dont need millions of participants to matter. Sometimes, small is the strategy. Sometimes, we need depth before breadth. WHEN SCALE IS THE LEVER That said, scale still has its place. Especially when the problem is systemic. Programs like the Educational Analytics Challenge are now growing toward a repeatable framework that more schools can adopt, while keeping the student voice at the center. The lesson? Scale works when it builds from authenticity, not when it erases it. The key is not to romanticize smallness or villainize growth. Its to stay honest about what kind of impact were after, and whether our obsession with scale is helping or hurting that mission. WHAT IF WE MADE ROOM FOR BOTH? What if our strategies had space for pilots that werent polished, partnerships that were scrappy, and impact that wasnt measured solely by reach? What if we treated scale as a choice, not a default? And what if we stopped asking Will it scale? as the first question, and started asking, Will it matter? Thats the kind of question worth building around. Rukiya Kelly is head of corporate impact and engagement at FICO.
Category:
E-Commerce
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