Vegetable mix linked to E.coli outbreak recalled

Health officials have said that a farm in California recalled a vegetable mix sold at Costco, which could be linked to a recent E.Coli outbreak.

According to a CDC news release, the Montana Public Health Laboratory tested the diced celery-onion blend and found results that “indicated the presence of E. coli O157:H7”. Tauxe added that state officials, particularly from Utah, had discovered the outbreak initially and helped establish the links between 19 illnesses in 7 states.

Taylor Farms Pacific says it has recalled all of its products from stores in 17 states.

A message left with Taylor Farms wasn’t immediately returned.

The notice to recall the tainted product has been issued Thursday on the website of the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

According to Costco, based in Issaquah, WA, the company only uses one supplier for the vegetables in its chicken salad sold in stores throughout the entire country.

The product is labeled “Chicken Salad made with Rotisserie Chicken” with item number 37719 on the label. “They really liked and ate the rotisserie chicken salad”, he said.

The form of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli can be life threatening, but no deaths have been reported. Two out of five have suffered from a type of kidney failure called hemolytic-uremic syndrome, which may lead to serious complications such as heart problems, coma and stroke. Symptoms usually set in one to three days after exposure and last about a week.

Tauxe says the CDC has already identified a DNA fingerprint of the E. coli strain that connects all 19 ill people. Symptoms can include abdominal cramps and diarrhea, which can sometimes be bloody.