Category: Rapid Printing

Listeria Outbreak: How LetterStream Quickly Mailed Out Recall Notices

LetterStream quickly and efficiently mailed out urgent recall notices to help prevent further tragedy in widespread Listeria outbreak.

A deadly Listeria outbreak linked to frozen nutritional shakes has resulted in 12 deaths and 38 infections across 21 states. The FDA and CDC issued an urgent recall, warning healthcare facilities and nursing homes of the dangers posed by contaminated ready-to-drink protein shakes. LetterStream played a crucial role in assisting a customer with mailing recall notices, ensuring at-risk individuals and caregivers received timely information that could help prevent further loss of life.

The Listeria Outbreak: What Happened?

In February 2025, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) traced a Listeria monocytogenes outbreak to frozen supplemental shakes produced by Prairie Farms Dairy Inc. These shakes, distributed under the Lyons ReadyCare and Sysco Imperial brands, were primarily sent to long-term care facilities, hospitals, and rehabilitation centers. Unlike retail food recalls, this outbreak disproportionately affected elderly patients, individuals with weakened immune systems, and hospitalized individuals—all of whom are at high risk for severe illness from Listeria (FDA, 2025; CDC, 2025).

The CDC confirmed 12 deaths and 37 hospitalizations among the 38 reported cases. Tracing the contamination back, authorities found that the same strain of Listeria had been present in the Fort Wayne, Indiana, production facility since 2018. This shocking discovery raised concerns about long-term safety violations and lapses in quality control (San Francisco Chronicle, 2025).

Immediate Recall Efforts to Protect Vulnerable Populations

Upon discovering the contamination, a nationwide recall was issued on February 22, 2025, urging healthcare facilities to immediately discard affected products. However, because the shakes were not sold in retail stores, public awareness was limited—making it harder for facilities and caregivers to react swiftly (People, 2025).

This is where LetterStream played a vital role.

LetterStream’s Contribution to the Rapid Recall Response

In the wake of the outbreak, one of our clients turned to LetterStream to expedite the mailing of urgent food recall notices to care facilities, patients, and caregivers. Our high-speed printing and mailing solutions enabled them to quickly notify thousands of recipients, reducing the risk of further Listeria-related illnesses and fatalities.

By utilizing USPS First-Class Mail and Certified Mail online, we ensured that the recall notices went out quickly so recipients could receive their notices promptly and securely. 

LetterStream’s automated mailing system provided:

  • Fast, reliable production and mailing of recall letters
  • Tracking options to confirm delivery through Certified Mail tracking

Through our streamlined print-and-mail services, we helped our client meet regulatory compliance requirements while maximizing the impact of their outreach. In a situation where every hour counts, our ability to handle time-sensitive, business-critical mailings contributed to public safety efforts.

Why Rapid Recall Notices Are Critical in Food Safety

In foodborne illness outbreaks, delays in communication can cost lives. The FDA and CDC depend on manufacturers and distributors to quickly notify those affected. While digital alerts and press releases are valuable, many healthcare administrators and caregivers rely on physical notices to take immediate action.

LetterStream specializes in handling:

  • All types of recall notices
  • Critical product safety communications
  • Mass mailing campaigns for urgent notifications

By bridging the gap between regulatory agencies and the public, we help ensure that important recall information reaches those who need it most—fast.

Final Thoughts: Public Safety Through Fast, Reliable Mail Solutions

The recent Listeria outbreak is a stark reminder of how crucial timely and effective communication is in public health emergencies. LetterStream remains committed to supporting businesses, healthcare providers, and government agencies in sending out urgent, business-critical mail.

For organizations needing fast, secure, and compliant recall notices, LetterStream provides an industry-leading solution—helping protect lives through efficient mail delivery.

LetterStream offers bulk printing and mailing services allowing companies to send physical mail online. Whether it’s online Certified Mail, First-Class Mail, FedEx 2Day, or postcards, we give both small businesses and large corporations that time and freedom back to work on tasks that better serve the company. If you’re interested in creating a free account, you can do so, here.

LetterStream small logo

Mail It Before End of Year

The Last-Minute Mail Marathon: Don’t Panic, LetterStream Has Your Back

The end of the year is here, and you’re the one tasked with getting all the business-critical mail out the door. Whether it’s statements, invoices, or notices, the pressure is real. With just two days left, it’s time to face the facts: there’s no room for error and no time for standing in line at the Post Office. But fear not—LetterStream.com is here to save the day!

Skip the Post Office: Let LetterStream Handle the Heavy Lifting

Why waste precious time battling long lines and dodging grumpy last-minute shoppers at the Post Office? With LetterStream’s Print and Mail services, you can handle everything from the comfort of your desk—or your favorite coffee shop (we won’t tell your boss).

LetterStream takes care of the whole process:
• Printing your documents.
• Stuffing envelopes.
• Addressing and applying postage.
• Mailing your critical correspondence on time.

All you need to do is upload your documents to LetterStream.com, customize your mailing preferences, and let us handle the rest. It’s that easy.

Why “Do It All Yourself” Is a Terrible Idea

You might be tempted to grab the office printer, some envelopes, and a stack of stamps. Let’s break down why that’s a recipe for disaster:
• Time Drain: Do you really have hours to spare folding papers and licking envelopes?
• Cost: Have you seen the price of printer ink lately? It’s practically liquid gold.
• Mistakes: A missed page or misaddressed envelope could cost your business more than just embarrassment.

With LetterStream, you’ll save time, reduce costs, and eliminate errors.

Tick-Tock: The Clock Is Ticking!

Those deadlines aren’t going to wait, and neither should you. The beauty of LetterStream’s services is that we specialize in fast, accurate, and professional mail handling, even when time is tight.

We’ve got you covered with:
• Certified Mail for critical legal documents.
• First-Class Mail for invoices and notices.
• FedEx 2-Day Shipping for when it really needs to arrive ASAP.

No minimum quantities, no contracts, just efficient and stress-free mailing solutions.

Make Next Year Easier—Start Using LetterStream Today

Why stop at a last-minute save? LetterStream can become your go-to solution for mailing all year round. Give yourself the gift of peace in the office—no more scrambling to meet deadlines or juggling envelopes.

The Bottom Line: Don’t Wait Another Second

If you’re staring down the end-of-year mailing deadline, don’t panic. Just head to LetterStream.com, upload your files, and let us work our magic. With two days to spare, there’s still time to get it all done without breaking a sweat.

Take a deep breath, grab a cup of coffee, and let us handle the rest.

LetterStream.com

Las Vegas Debt Connection Symposium and Expo 2019

LetterStream

LetterStream takes on Vegas!

Come say Hi, and meet some of our LetterStream team. There are many ways that you can meet us, but in this case, all you have to do is stop by our booth. Were talking about the Las Vegas Debt Connection Symposium and Expo being hosted at the Red Rock Hotel, September 10th-12th, 2019. Our booth at this Expo will be stocked with our fantastic and passionate staff.

This Expo will be “focusing on networking and connection with clients, service providers, product suppliers, agencies, and attorneys- at a whole new level… This symposium and Expo’s concept is to have an opportunity to meet peers and other industry professionals, as well as finding new products and services that might make your job easier, better, more efficient, more productive, etc.”  (DCSE)

LetterStream is going to have staff on hand to explain why outsourcing print and mail projects makes the most sense, as well as showing how mail managers can get their important mailings out the door in as little as two minutes. We’re sure there will be many questions about how Certified Mail can be sent and tracked online without ever going to the post office, and will be more than happy to answer every last one of them.

Please stop in and see us about your first-class mailing, statement mailing, payment coupon booklet printing, FedEx letters, annual meeting notice, postcards, certified mail, and any other mailing projects that you might need for a better solution.

Be sure to stop by booth #202, and say hello. We will be awaiting your arrival. See you soon!

Innovations In Printing And Mailing

popular_science_cover

I was flying out of town the other day and picked up a Popular Science magazine to read on the flight. I was happy to see the title was “100 Best Innovations of the Year” and wondered if any of our mailing innovations had made the list. There are a few different mailing innovations that we rolled out this year and I thought I might find one or two discussed in the magazine.

For instance, we have our innovative Return Mail Processing service where we can process our clients’ return mail. This is a good way to keep undeliverable mail from being returned to our customers. Instead, we get it. Then we flag all the addresses in our customer’s account that have been returned, showing the return date and the return reason from the USPS yellow sticker. In addition, reports can be run by user, date range, mail type and many other filters for the letters that were returned.

Another innovation is our USPS Registered Mail solution, which allows users to create and send Registered Mail on our website. If you send Registered Mail, you know that it is one of the most time-consuming and confusing types of mail that you could possibly send. True to LetterStream’s form, we make the process so easy you can create the registered letter–or hundreds of them–in around 2 minutes on our website. We keep track of the USPS tracking information and the signature cards in an orderly fashion on our website.

Some may say that our online Certified Mail process is the most innovative Certified Mail solution they’ve ever seen. We’d like to agree… but we’ve been processing Certified Mail this way for nearly 10 years, so it might not be an innovation of this year.

We’ll, I’ve skimmed the 100 Best Innovations article, and unfortunately I could not find the name LetterStream. But that’s ok, our customers repeatedly give us the honor of being great innovators in the mailing business, and they are the ones we want to please.

If you want to learn more about our mail innovations, check out our website, explore our blog or pick up the phone and call us.

Easy HOA Annual Meeting Notice Mailings

a sign in the front yard with a reminder about an HOA annual meeting coming up for HOA community members

For Community Managers and Property Management Companies, annual meeting mailings are some of the most complex document sets that need to be mailed to homeowners.

The notice of annual meeting can include a variety of the following documents: cover letter, meeting agenda, draft budget, absentee ballot, community newsletter, ballot instructions, proxy, bios (biographical information) of candidates, community survey, stamped return envelope, and/or secret ballot envelope.

In addition to the different document types, most community managers ask that the proxy be printed on a colored sheet of paper, and the ballot on another. Sometimes there are special instructions from board members to print on both sides of the sheet of paper for some documents, and only print on one side for others.

annual meeting notices

For those of you who are responsible for the annual meeting packet for your HOA, you know just how crazy these mailings can get. However, for those of you who are already using LetterStream to create your annual meeting announcement, you can attest to just how fast and easy the process has become.

On the LetterStream website you can do the following:

  • Specify paper size and paper color per document
  • Specify 1-sided or 2-sided (simplex/duplex) printing per page
  • Specify black and white or full color printing per sheet
  • Include a return envelope with or without the homeowners return address pre-printed on it
  • Include a secret ballot envelope

What makes this process so easy is that most of the options are simply check boxes that need to be clicked to activate the options.

So whether your HOA annual meeting notices can go out in a standard size business envelope (#10), or require a large flat packet envelope, your mailing can be created online in a flash. If you are a bit skeptical, log in to www.letterstream.com and experiment with our mailing tools to see for yourself.

Your mailing can be created online without so much as a phone call or credit card swipe, and if you don’t like the online proofs, simply delete the job! (You’ll only have to pay for a job if you decide you want us to print and mail it).

Fun Burrito Postcard

Unique Thank You Postcard

I was walking through our facility and saw this postcard in our production department. I’m always fascinated by the creativity of our customers and enjoy seeing unique ways to communicate information.

This particular postcard jumped out at me as it had our company name on it. Who’d be sending a postcard with LetterStream printed on the front… other than a LetterStream employee?

Turns out one of our vendors bought us lunch (which was greatly appreciated) the same day that our new tech services manager started. Our new manager learned how easy it is to make postcards as well as created a fun and creative way to say “Thank You” at the same time!