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Salmonella Outbreaks: A Recent History

February 21, 2007

Salmonella • Salmonella Outbreaks: A Recent History • Salmonella: What It Is --- • More about Food Safety

There was a time there when Salmonella was associated largely with chickens and eggs, but as the last few years have shown the potentially deadly pathogen can show up in all kinds of foods.

A few of the more recent examples:

• Peanut Butter Peter Pan, Great Value peanut butter blamed for sickening an unknown number of consumers nationwide.

• Tomatoes In November 2006, tainted tomatoes served in restaurants caused 183 reported cases of illness in 21 states.

• Cadbury Schweppes Chocolate Bars British food company Cadbury Schweppes recalled one million chocolate bars over salmonella concerns in June 2006.

• Hershey's Chocolate In November 2006, Hershey recalled a number of candy products made at one of its Canadian plants. Candy produced in the U.S. was not affected, the company said.

• "Wild Kitty" Cat Food Earlier this month, FDA said it detected Salmonella in frozen raw Wild Kitty Cat Food.

• Basil In April 2005, Majestic International Spice Corporation of Montebello, CA, recalled its dried "Extra Fancy Basil."

• Orange Juice In July 2005, FDA warned against drinking unpasteurized orange juice products distributed under a variety of brand names by Orchid Island Juice Company because of Salmonella incidents.

• Soft Cheese In March 2005, FDA said some cheeses that are made with raw milk present a health risk, especially to high-risk groups such as pregnant women, newborns, older adults, and people with weakened immune systems.

• Raw Milk Following a 2005 outbreak in the state of Washington, FDA warned the public against drinking raw milk because it may contain harmful bacteria that can cause life-threatening illnesses. Raw milk is not treated or pasteurized to remove disease-causing bacteria.

• Almonds In 2004, Paramount Farms extended an earlier recall of natural raw almonds sold under the Kirkland Signature, Trader Joe's and Sunkist brands. Paramount said that from now on it would "pasteurize" all almonds before shipping.

• Frozen Chicken In April 2005, USDA said it had linked cases of Salmonella infections in people to stuffed frozen chicken products sold in Minnesota and Michigan.

Perhaps surprisingly, there have been no recent major incidents involving chicken eggs.

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