Seeds Implicated In Salmonella Sprout Outbreak Reportedly Imported From Italy

Posted on May 6, 2009 by Shawn Stevens

The source of the multi-state Salmonella Outbreak linked to fresh alfalfa sprouts has likely been determined.

According to reports, the Salmonella strain implicated in the outbreak likely originated from seeds sold by the Caudill Seed Company of Louisville, Kentucky. In turn, Lyle Orwig, a company spokesman, stated that the offending seeds were imported by Caudill from Italy. As reported previously, Caudill has withdrawn all seed batches with six-digit lot numbers starting with “032”; the recalled seeds are packaged in 50-pound white bags marked with a white or yellow label.

Although testing did not reveal any Salmonella at Caudill’s facilities, Orwig reports that, “what [the FDA] has said to us, is the cases all led to sprouts, from multiple growers, and the common link is seeds.”  Seeds, anyway, from Italy...
 

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Salmonella Saintpaul Sprouts In . . . Sprouts

Posted on April 27, 2009 by Shawn Stevens

As a result of an ongoing Salmonella outbreak being investigated by the CDC and FDA, the FDA has warned consumers to avoid eating raw alfalfa sprouts until further notice.

To date, 31 cases of illnesses with the outbreak strain of Salmonella Saintpaul have been confirmed in Michigan, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Utah and West Virginia. In turn, most of the individuals who became ill reported eating raw alfalfa sprouts. While some cases reported eating raw sprouts at restaurants, others reported purchasing raw sprouts at the retail level. According to the FDA, the outbreak appears to be an extension of an earlier outbreak in February and March (which involved cases Nebraska, South Dakota, Iowa, Kansas, and Minnesota).  Click on the following link to view the FDA Alfalfa Sprout Notice.

Interestingly, the ongoing investigation has indicated that the Salmonella contamination in harvested sprouts may be may have originated from contaminated alfalfa sprout seeds. Thus, because suspected seed lots have been sold and grown throughout the country, and because washing the harvested products will likely not help, the FDA and CDC have warned consumers not to eat any raw sprouts from any source until further notice. 

According to the FDA, governmental investigators are working closely with the alfalfa sprout industry to identify which alfalfa seeds and sprouts are not affected, so that the current advisory can be refined as quickly as possible. 

Tags: , , , , , , ,