US - Multistate Outbreak of Salmonella Poona Infections Linked to Imported Cucumbers

[Pathfinder]

Multistate Outbreak of Salmonella Poona Infections Linked to Imported Cucumbers


Posted September 9, 2015 4:30 PM ET



Highlights

• Read the Recall & Advice to Consumers, Restaurants, and Retailers >>
• CDC, multiple states, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are investigating a multistate outbreak of Salmonella Poona infections.
• 341 people infected with the outbreak strains of Salmonella Poona have been reported from 30 states, an increase of 56 cases since the last update on September 4.
  • 70 ill people have been hospitalized, and two deaths have been reported from California (1) and Texas (1).
  • 53% of ill people are children younger than 18 years.
• Epidemiologic, laboratory, and traceback investigations have identified imported cucumbers from Mexico and distributed by Andrew & Williamson Fresh Produce as a likely source of the infections in this outbreak.
  • 91 (68%) of 134 people interviewed reported eating cucumbers in the week before their illness began.
  • Eleven illness clusters have been identified in seven states. In all of these clusters, interviews found that cucumbers were a food item eaten in common by ill people.
  • Arizona, California, Montana, and Nevada isolated Salmonella from samples of cucumbers collected from various locations that were distributed by Andrew & Williamson Fresh Produce.
• On September 4, 2015, Andrew & Williamson Fresh Produce voluntarily recalled all cucumbers sold under the “Limited Edition” brand label during the period from August 1, 2015 through September 3, 2015 because they may be contaminated with Salmonella.
  • The type of cucumber is often referred to as a “slicer” or “American” cucumber and is dark green in color. Typical length is 7 to 10 inches.
  • In retail locations the cucumbers are typically sold in a bulk display without any individual packaging or plastic wrapping.
  • A photo of the packing carton is available.
  • Limited Edition cucumbers were distributed in the states of Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, and Utah. Further distribution to other states may have occurred.
• Consumers should not eat, restaurants should not serve, and retailers should not sell recalled cucumbers.
  • If you aren’t sure if your cucumbers were recalled, ask the place of purchase or your supplier. When in doubt, don’t eat, sell, or serve them and throw them out.
• CDC's National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System laboratory is conducting antibiotic resistance testing on clinical isolates collected from ill people infected with the outbreak strains; results will be reported when they become available.
• This investigation is ongoing. CDC will provide updates when more information is available.

September 9, 2015

Case Count Update

Since the last update on September 4, 2015, 56 new ill people have been reported from Alaska (1), Arizona (6), California (21), Hawaii (1), Illinois (1), Louisiana (1), Missouri (1), New Mexico (3), Oklahoma (3), Oregon (5), Pennsylvania (2), South Carolina (1), Texas (9), and Washington (1).
As of September 8, 2015, a total of 341 people infected with the outbreak strains ofSalmonella Poona have been reported from 30 states. The number of ill people reported from each state is as follows: Alaska (9), Arizona (66), Arkansas (6), California (72), Colorado (14), Hawaii (1), Idaho (8), Illinois (6), Kansas (1), Kentucky (1), Louisiana (4), Minnesota (12), Missouri (8), Montana (10), Nebraska (2), Nevada (7), New Mexico (18), New York (4), North Dakota (1), Ohio (2), Oklahoma (8), Oregon (8), Pennsylvania (2), South Carolina (7), Texas (18), Utah (30), Virginia (1), Washington (10), Wisconsin (2), and Wyoming (3).
Among people for whom information is available, illnesses started on dates ranging from July 3, 2015 to August 30, 2015. Ill people range in age from less than 1 year to 99, with a median age of 15. Fifty-three percent of ill people are children younger than 18 years. Fifty-eight percent of ill people are female. Among 214 people with available information, 70 (33%) report being hospitalized. Two deaths have been reported from California (1) and Texas (1).
Illnesses that occurred after August 16, 2015 might not be reported yet due to the time it takes between when a person becomes ill and when the illness is reported. This takes an average of 2 to 4 weeks. Please see the Timeline for Reporting Cases of SalmonellaInfection for more details.
Investigation Update

Several state health and agriculture departments are collecting and testing leftover cucumbers from retail locations for the presence of Salmonella. Since the last update on September 4, 2015, the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services isolated one of the outbreak strains of Salmonella Poona from a cucumber collected from a retail location. Additionally, the Arizona Department of Health Services and the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services isolated Salmonella from cucumbers collected from retail locations. Preliminary information indicates that these cucumbers were distributed by Andrew & Williamson Fresh Produce. DNA “fingerprinting” is being conducted to determine the pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) pattern of the Salmonella isolated from the cucumbers in Arizona and Montana. DNA “fingerprinting” is still ongoing for theSalmonella isolated from cucumbers collected from the Andrew & Williamson Fresh Produce facility by the San Diego County Health and Human Services Agency. Results of additional product testing will be reported when available.
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http://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/poona-09-15/index.html

 

[Pathfinder]

Multistate Outbreak of Salmonella Poona Infections Linked to Imported Cucumbers

Posted September 15, 2015 4:30 PM ET
...
September 15, 2015

Case Count Update

Since the last update on September 9, 2015, 77 new ill people have been reported from Alaska (1), Arizona (6), California (17), Colorado (2), Idaho (6), Indiana (2), Minnesota (8), Montana (3), Nevada (2), New Mexico (4), North Dakota (1), Oklahoma (2), South Carolina (1), Texas (2), Utah (7), Washington (5), Wisconsin (7), and Wyoming (1).

As of September 15, 2015, a total of 418 people infected with the outbreak strains ofSalmonella Poona have been reported from 31 states. The number of ill people reported from each state is as follows: Alaska (10), Arizona (72), Arkansas (6), California (89), Colorado (16), Hawaii (1), Idaho (14), Illinois (6), Indiana (2), Kansas (1), Kentucky (1), Louisiana (4), Minnesota (20), Missouri (8), Montana (13), Nebraska (2), Nevada (9), New Mexico (22), New York (4), North Dakota (2), Ohio (2), Oklahoma (10), Oregon (8), Pennsylvania (2), South Carolina (8), Texas (20), Utah (37), Virginia (1), Washington (15), Wisconsin (9), and Wyoming (4).

Among people for whom information is available, illnesses started on dates ranging from July 3, 2015 to September 3, 2015. Ill people range in age from less than 1 year to 99, with a median age of 17. Fifty-two percent of ill people are children younger than 18 years. Fifty-three percent of ill people are female. Among 290 people with available information, 91 (31%) report being hospitalized. Two deaths have been reported from California (1) and Texas (1).
Illnesses that occurred after August 22, 2015 might not be reported yet due to the time it takes between when a person becomes ill and when the illness is reported. This takes an average of 2 to 4 weeks. Please see the Timeline for Reporting Cases of SalmonellaInfection for more details.
Investigation Update

On September 11, 2015, Custom Produce Sales voluntarily recalled all cucumbers sold under the Fat Boy label starting August 1, 2015 because they may be contaminated withSalmonella. These cucumbers were sent to Custom Produce Sales from Andrew & Williamson Fresh Produce. Fat Boy label cucumbers were produced in Baja California, Mexico and distributed in the states of California, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Nevada, North Dakota, Oklahoma, and Texas.

Unlabeled cucumbers packed into a black reusable plastic container, and sold in Nevada as of August 1, 2015, are also covered by this recall. The type of cucumber is often referred to as a “slicer” or “American” cucumber. It is dark green in color and typical length is 7 to 10 inches. In retail locations it is typically sold in a bulk display without any individual packaging or plastic wrapping. These cucumbers are shipped in a black, green, and red cardboard box which reads “Fat Boy Fresh Produce.” Photos of the packing cartons are available.

Several state health and agriculture departments are collecting and testing cucumbers from retail locations for the presence of Salmonella. Since the last update on September 9, 2015, the Arizona Department of Health Services and the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services isolated one of the outbreak strains of Salmonella Poona from cucumbers collected from retail locations. Preliminary information indicates that these cucumbers were distributed by Andrew & Williamson Fresh Produce. The San Diego County Health and Human Services Agencyisolated one of the outbreak strains ofSalmonella Poona from cucumbers collected from the Andrew & Williamson Fresh Produce facility.

The National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System (NARMS) is a U.S. public health surveillance system that tracks antibiotic resistance in foodborne and other enteric bacteria found in people, raw meat and poultry, and food-producing animals. NARMS is a partnership among the CDC, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), USDA, and state and local health departments.

The NARMS human surveillance program at CDC monitors antibiotic resistance inSalmonella and other bacteria isolated from clinical specimens submitted to NARMS by public health laboratories. CDC's NARMS laboratory conducted antibiotic resistance testing on clinical isolates collected from 3 ill people infected with one of the outbreak strains. Of the 3 isolates tested, all (100%) were susceptible to all antibiotics tested on the NARMS panel. CDC’s NARMS laboratory continues to conduct antibiotic resistance testing on additional clinical isolates collected from ill persons infected with the outbreak strains. Results will be reported when they become available.
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http://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/poona-09-15/index.html

 

[Shiloh]

[h=3]Source: http://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/poona-09-15/index.html

September 29, 2015[/h] [h=4]Case Count Update[/h] Since the last update on September 22, 2015, 113 new ill people have been reported from 19 states. It can take up to a week from the time people eat food contaminated with Salmonella before they get sick. Also, cucumbers have a shelf life of up to 14 days. It is not unexpected to continue to see illnesses reported after the recalls. Some people may not have known about the recall and eaten the contaminated cucumbers after the recall.
As of September 28, 2015, 671 people infected with the outbreak strains of Salmonella Poona have been reported from 34 states. The number of ill people reported from each state is as follows: Alabama (1), Alaska (13), Arizona (112), Arkansas (9), California (164), Colorado (17), Hawaii (1), Idaho (22), Illinois (8), Indiana (2), Iowa (5), Kansas (2), Kentucky (1), Louisiana (5), Minnesota (34), Missouri (10), Montana (14), Nebraska (5), Nevada (13), New Mexico (30), New York (5), North Dakota (3), Ohio (2), Oklahoma (12), Oregon (19), Pennsylvania (2), South Carolina (9), South Dakota (1), Texas (33), Utah (51), Virginia (1), Washington (21), Wisconsin (38), and Wyoming (6).
Among people for whom information is available, illnesses started on dates ranging from July 3, 2015 to September 21, 2015. Ill people range in age from less than 1 year to 99, with a median age of 17. Fifty-one percent of ill people are children younger than 18 years. Fifty-four percent of ill people are female. Among 459 people with available information, 131 (29%) report being hospitalized. Three deaths have been reported from Arizona (1), California (1) and Texas (1).
Illnesses that occurred after September 2, 2015 might not be reported yet. A series of events occurs between the time a person is infected and the time public health officials can determine that the person is part of an outbreak. This means that there will be a delay between when a person gets sick and confirmation that he or she is part of an outbreak. This takes an average of 2 to 4 weeks. Please see the Timeline for Reporting Cases of Salmonella Infection for more details.