The states affected are Missouri, Oklahoma, Kansas and Pennsylvania. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that children, seniors, pregnant women, and those with weakened immune systems avoid eating raw sprouts of any kind and that others thoroughly cook sprouts before eating them.
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Salmonella was detected in the irrigation water and alfalfa sprouts at the growing location, during the initial testing conducted at Sweetwater Farms. State and local health officials were able to trace back the illnesses to sprouts at five different restaurants.
The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) is advising people not to eat alfalfa sprouts produced by Jack & The Green Sprouts while it investigates the outbreak, which has sickened seven people, according to an email news release.
“It can’t be washed off, so even if people are being diligent and washing their sprouts prior to eating them, that won’t actually help at all to remove any of that bacterial contamination”, she said.
The information available to date indicates that alfalfa sprouts that have come from Sweetwater Farms may be contaminated with Salmonella and are not safe to eat. Further testing is ongoing to determine the type and DNA fingerprint of Salmonella isolated in these samples.
Those struck down with the E. coli O157 virus fell ill in January and early February.
The individuals who got ill ranged in age from 18 to 84 In Minnesota.
The CDC said the outbreak is linked to sprouts produced by Sweetwater Farms of Inman, Kansas.
Symptoms of a Salmonella infection, which include nausea, vomiting and diarrhea that can be bloody, usually develop within six to 72 hours of exposure and last about a week. In interviews, 10 (83%) of 12 ill people reported eating or maybe eating sprouts or menu items containing sprouts in the week before becoming ill.
Salmonella is responsible for 1 million cases of food borne illness in the US every year.
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Health officials have confirmed an outbreak of E. coli in several Minnesotans who are believed to have consumed alfalfa sprouts.
