A salmonella outbreak linked to a Florida-based cucumber producer has spread to 45 persons reporting sickness in 18 states, according to the US Food and Drug Administration on Friday.
Target has joined a growing list of merchants that have sold recalled cucumbers or ready-to-eat goods containing the fruit, and it is advising customers to throw them away.
The merchant published a list of recalled products, which included a Greek-style chicken salad from Boar’s Head and many sushi restaurant mainstays, such as maki rolls with tempura and California rolls, all marketed under the Mai label.
Walmart was added to the list of businesses encouraging customers to discard potentially contaminated products last week, according to the US Food and Drug Administration; its Marketside cucumber slices are included in the recall.
Patients linked to the epidemic have been found in Alabama, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, North Carolina, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia, the FDA announced on Friday.
The FDA claimed that 16 of the 45 people who reported illness related to the epidemic have been hospitalized. There have been no deaths reported.
While investigators have focused on the strain salmonella montevideo, numerous other strains were found in samples from a Pennsylvania distribution center owned by Florida-based Bedner Growers, which is thought to be a source, the FDA said in a statement Friday.
The FDA stated that the several strains appear to be unrelated to the spring outbreak, but that it is studying further with scientists from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“CDC is working to determine if additional human illnesses match these additional strains,” according to the FDA. “Further analysis of the sample is pending.”
According to the EPA, all of the illnesses have been traced back to cucumbers made by Bedner and marketed by Fresh Start Produce Sales. The cucumbers and related products were marketed between April 29 and May 19, according to the FDA.
The initial merchants identified as selling potentially contaminated cucumbers were three Bedner’s Farm Fresh Market locations in Florida, but the number of public-facing dealers has grown.
Other wholesalers and restaurants were informed that they may have purchased the potentially contaminated cucumbers branded for wholesale as “supers,” “selects,” or “plains,” the FDA stated.
During a check of Bedner Growers’ facilities last month, FDA inspectors discovered contaminated cucumbers, according to the report. The review came in response to a Salmonella Africana epidemic linked to the company last year, according to the government.
Bedner’s did not immediately respond to a request for comment late Friday. A spokeswoman for Fresh Start Produce Sales stated last week that the company is “committed to protecting public health and assisting Bedner Growers with its recall.”
Salmonella is a bacterium that may grow in the presence of animals and their feces, contaminating neighboring food that can make its way to the dinner table if not cleansed, according to the FDA and CDC.
Older persons, children under the age of five, and those with weakened immune systems are most vulnerable to salmonella’s most severe symptoms, including death. According to the CDC, patients who become infected can experience stomach cramps, diarrhea, nausea, and the need to vomit anywhere from six hours to six days later.
Salmonella is “a leading cause of foodborne illness, hospitalizations, and deaths in the United States and worldwide,” according to the CDC.