More than two dozen types of salad products sold in three major grocery store chains may have been contaminated by the parasite Cyclospora, federal health officials warned consumers on Monday.
The foods affected include a variety of beef, pork and poultry salads and wraps sold from Caito Foods LLC, which are sold in Trader Joe’s, Walgreens, and Kroger. The products have a “sell by” (also “best by,” “enjoy by,” “best if sold by”) dates between July 18 and July 23, 2018, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service. These items are also identifiable by their establishment number — look for “EST. 39985 or P-39985” — located inside or next to the USDA mark of inspection.
A full list of potentially contaminated products and images of some of their labels are available on the USDA’s website, and are sold under a variety of brand names like Trader Joe’s, Boar’s Head and Delish. The FDA is working to remove all affected products from shelves and advises consumers who have already purchased some to throw them out or return them to the store.
The parasite in question causes intestinal illness, including diarrhea, nausea, fatigue, weight loss and stomach pain, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Symptoms usually last between a few days and a month or longer and are treated a combination of two antibiotics. A person who’s consumed a food contaminated usually won’t become ill for about a week, which means many of the cases caused by this outbreak likely haven’t been reported yet.
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This outbreak began when the Indianapolis-based distributor learned from its lettuce supplier, Fresh Express, that its chopped romaine had been recalled. This is the second instance of Cyclospora contamination linked to Fresh Express since May, CNN reports. The first was in McDonald’s salads sold in 14 states, which made at least 256 people sick. (McDonald’s has since removed affected products, the CDC says.)
Consumers who think they may have been affected by the outbreak should contact their health care provider immediately.
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