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By Jess Thomson
Science Reporter
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18 people across the U.S. have been hospitalized after eating cucumbers contaminated with Salmonella.
A total of 68 people across 19 U.S. states have been infected in the outbreak, according to a U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) statement, with no deaths yet reported.
The outbreak has been traced to a batch of contaminated cucumbers grown by Agrotato, S.A. de C.V. in Sonora, Mexico.
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"Epidemiologic and traceback information shows that cucumbers grown by Agrotato, S.A. de C.V. in Sonora, Mexico, including recalled cucumbers from SunFed Produce, LLC, may be contaminated with Salmonella and may be making people sick," the CDC said.
This led SunFed Produce, LLC, who sold cucumbers grown by the company, to recall all sizes of their cucumber products from stores across 26 states.
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States where the cucumbers had been sold included Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin.
The vegetables were also recalled across the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, Calgary, Ontario and Saskatchewan.
CDC data reveals that 16 of the infected people were in Montana, with eight in Colorado, seven in Oregon and five each in Washington, Texas and Massachusetts.
Additionally, four people were infected in South Dakota, three in Wisconsin, two each in Iowa, Illinois, Utah and Wyoming, and one each in Alaska, California, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania.
Eleven of the infected people became sick on November 1, with the majority of the others reporting illness in the week before and after.
"The recalled cucumbers were sold between October 12, 2024, thru November 26, 2024, and are being recalled because they have the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella," the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said in a statement regarding the recall, which occurred on November 27.
The CDC and FDA have warned customers to not consume any cucumbers sold between these dates, and to wash items and surfaces that may have come into contact with the recalled cucumbers. Businesses are advised to do the same, as well as notify customers if they purchased the recalled batch, if possible.
"If you bought whole fresh American cucumbers from October 12 through November 26 and can't tell where they are from throw them away," the CDC said.
Salmonella infections, commonly known as salmonellosis, can result in symptoms within around 6 hours to 6 days. These symptoms include diarrhea, abdominal cramps, nausea and vomiting, as well as a fever, chills and dehydration. In most cases, symptoms last 4–7 days, but they can persist longer if complications arise.
While the majority of Salmonella infections are mild and resolve on their own, they can pose serious health risks, especially to vulnerable groups such as infants, the elderly, pregnant women, and those with weakened immune systems
"In some people, the illness may be so severe that the patient is hospitalized. Salmonella infection may spread from the intestines to the bloodstream and then to other parts of the body," the CDC explained.
"Children younger than 5, adults 65 and older, and people with weakened immune systems are more likely to have severe illness."
The CDC and FDA both advise anyone who thinks they may have severe Salmonella symptoms to contact their healthcare provider.
"As soon as we learned of this issue, we immediately acted to protect consumers," Craig Slate, President at SunFed, said in a statement.
"We are working closely with authorities and the implicated ranch to determine the possible cause.
"Here at SunFed, food safety and consumer health and wellness have been our priorities for more than 30 years.
"We require all of our growers to strictly comply with the FDA food safety requirements."
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Update 12/03/2024 6:48 a.m. This article has been updated to include information and a map showing the location of the infected patients, and the timeline of infections.
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