In Your Refrigerator?

There are more food, medicine and medical device recalls each week than we can keep up with, but when something is national or extremely serious, we try to bring you the details. This is worth noting.

First published August 19. Updated August 22, 2010.

How can it happen — that in this age of so called advanced and supposedly safe food production, more than 500 million eggs distributed throughout the United States have been recalled during the past week? The recall of shell eggs due to salmonella poisoning began on August 13 2010 and continues, involving numerous brand names and a number of states..

If you live in California, Arizona, Missouri, Minnesota, Texas, Georgia, Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Nevada, Iowa, Illinois, Utah, Nebraska, Arkansas, Wisconsin, South Dakota, North Dakota, Missouri, Texas and Oklahoma, you should be concerned. Wholesalers, distribution centers and food service companies in these states are affected by the recall and there may be more to come.

So far, the brand names affected by the first  recall are Albertsons, Farm Fresh, James Farms, Glenview, Mountain Dairy, Ralphs, Boomsma, Lund, Kemps and Pacific Coast and its not over yet. On August 17, NuCal Foods of Ripon, California issued a recall notice of eggs packaged in 5-dozen containers with brand names Bayview, Mountain Dairy and NuLaid. Access a more detailed list.

Where did these eggs originate? Wright County Egg of Galt, Iowa, owned by Jack DeCoster. According to the New York Times, DeCoster has had trouble with regulators in the past over poor and unsafe working conditions, environmental violations, harassment of workers and the hiring of illegal aliens.

Subsequent to the Wright recall, Country Eggs, Inc., Los Angeles, California, recalled eggs distributed to food wholesalers, distribution centers and foodservice companies in California, Arizona and Nevada. Eggs were packaged under the Country Eggs, Inc brand name in 15 dozen bulk pack with the identifying plant code of P 1946 and P 1026.

Hillandale Farms of Iowa also issued a Voluntary Recall of Shell Eggs due to the same problem. Their press release did not list Wright as the supplier. Hillandale eggs are distributed through grocery distribution centers, retail groceries and food service companies in Arkansas, California, Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Texas and Wisconsin.

Hillandale brand names affected are Hillandale Farms, Sunny Farms and Sunny Meadow in 6, 12, 18 cartons and 30 and 60 egg packages. Carton codes are P1860 and P1663, as well as loose eggs under the names Wholesome Farms and West Creek.

These are voluntary recalls, so what else is out there? Keep in mind that loose eggs can be repackaged under different brand names. The FDA is investigating. Just how long will this investigation take?

A dramatic increase in the number of reported human salmonella infections, a four-fold leap over the expected number of reported cases, was recorded in late June and early July. Approximately 200 isolated cases were uploaded to the CDC on a weekly basis compared to an expected 50 uploads a week on average during this same period in the previous 5 years. Many states have reported increases of this pattern since May.

The CDC (Centers for Disease Control & Prevention) says, "A person infected with Salmonella Enteritidis usually has fever, abdominal cramps, and diarrhea beginning 12 to 72 hours after consuming a contaminated food or beverage. The illness usually lasts 4 to 7 days, and most persons recover without antibiotic treatment. However, the diarrhea can be severe, and hospitalization may be required. The elderly, infants, and those with impaired immune systems may have a more serious illness. In these patients, the infection may spread from the intestines to the blood stream, and then to other body sites and can cause death unless the person is treated promptly with antibiotics."

The CDC lists tips to reduce your risk of getting Salmonella Enteritidis.

How does this bacteria get into chickens and eggs? Which comes first? Salmonella can infect the ovaries of hens and therefore the eggs. The egg industry regularly tests hens for ovarian bacteria. Note that the CDC reports that only a small number of hens are affected at any one time and that an infected bird can lay a great number of normal eggs and only occasionally, one that is contaminated. Isn't that comforting? —- especially because an infected hen will appear healthy and there is no way for a consumer to look at an egg in the shell or after it is opened to determine whether or not salmonella is present. Egg shells can be contaminated by chicken fecal matter when the hen sits on her eggs.

Best protection is to well-cook your eggs. Of course, that means no raw eggs in your ceasar salad and no "over-easy" breakfast.

Contact Information:
Concerned about the eggs at your local supermarket or the ones in your fridge? Contact the Egg Safety Media Hotline, 404/367-2761.  More information is also available at the Egg Safety Center web site. 

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