Salmonella Food Poisoning Symptoms & Treatment

According to data from the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), about 4,595 tons of meat and meat products have been recalled in the first quarter of this year.  Twenty-one recalls have been recorded thus far, with the largest being 5.7 million pounds of beef and veal that came in two stages.

Huntington Meat Packing, a Montebello California based company, first recalled 864,000 pounds of beef in January due to possible contamination with E. Coli O157:H7.  In February, the company expanded the recall to include an additional 4.9 million pounds of beef and veal.  This recall was expanded due to the FSIS’ belief that the output of these products during the time period of January 4th and 12th was made in unsanitary conditions.

In second place for the largest of these 21 recalls is Windsor Foods, which recalled 1.7 million pounds of ready-to-eat chicken quesadillas and beef taquitos.  The reason for this recall was the HVP (hydrolyzed vegetable protein) contained in these foods, which was contaminated with Salmonella.  The HVP was produced by Nevada’s Basic Food Flavors.

The remaining recall for the first quarter involving over a million pounds of food was by Rhode Island based Daniele International Inc., which has been in the news a great deal recently.  In the beginning, there were questions as to whether the foods Daniele recalled were tainted due to contaminated black pepper or red pepper.  The company recalled products on three different occasions with the total weight of these products reaching 1.4 million pounds.

Salmonella contamination has proven to be the biggest problem so far this year, and has been responsible for more meat and meat products being recalled than any other pathogen during the quarter, whether directly or through the HVP recall. Approximately 3.22 million pounds of these recalled foods can be attributed to Salmonella food poisoning contamination.

It’s plain to see that Salmonella and E. Coli are a real problem in the United States, and are often responsible for foodborne illnesses.  While symptoms in healthy individuals are usually only mild, some people may be at higher risk of serious complications.  These include young children, the elderly, pregnant women and individuals with compromised immune systems.

If you are injured by contaminated food, consider consulting with a food poisoning attorney.

Daniele International Inc. has recalled 1.4 million pounds of various ready-to-eat meats over the last two months due to Salmonella Montevideo contamination, a strain that has sickened 252 people over 44 states since July the 4th of last year.  Now, the company has filed lawsuits against two suppliers and has suffered a significant loss in profit due to the outbreak.

Lawsuits against Daniele by those who have become infected with salmonella food poisoning continue to rise, as public trust in the company remains low.  Daniele has implemented a new safety system, and has filed suit against Wholesome Spice and Seasonings Inc. and the Mincing Trading Corporation citing existing and future monetary losses.  These were two of the company’s largest pepper suppliers, and Daniele purchased 90,000 pounds of pepper from these two suppliers in 2009 according to the lawsuit.

Daniele was forced to refund $1.5 million to customers and has recalled 1.4 million pounds of its products due to the pepper used to coat many of the meat products it manufactures, such as Italian-style salami.  The Salmonella Montevideo outbreak was linked in early March to black pepper used in production by Daniele by the Rhode Island Department of Health and other health officials.  The US Department of Agriculture determined that the contaminated pepper used by Daniele in processing its meats had been supplied by Wholesome and Mincing.  According to Daniele’s website, they now use only irradiated spices in the production of their products and have terminated relationships with the two suppliers.

Mincing and Wholesome recalled several of their products based on the findings of the Department of Agriculture, including black pepper, ground red pepper and crushed red pepper packaged in 20, 25 and 50 pound cartons.  The lawsuit blames the two spice manufacturers of negligence and breach of contract specifically.

Salmonella food poisoning produces only mild symptoms in healthy individuals, but can result in serious complications in those most at risk including young children, the elderly, and people with compromised immune systems.  If you suspect salmonella food poisoning, seek medical attention.  Find out more about your rights and possible monetary compensation by contacting a reputable New York food poisoning attorney.

Recently, news of hydrolyzed vegetable protein that may be tainted with salmonella bacteria has caused many manufacturers of snack products to recall a variety of foods.  Now, Barcel of Irving, Texas has been informed that one of their suppliers of seasonings used in Barcel Tostachos contains the HVP manufactured by Basic Food Flavors, Inc., which recently recalled several lots of the HVP due to possible exposure to salmonella.

The product that is being voluntarily recalled by Barcel is Tostachos 3.17oz. chips with a UPC Code of 074323 04358 7 and lot #’s of AUG1110, AUG1810, AUG2510 and SEP0110.

So far, this is the only product Barcel has recalled and there have been no reports of illness associated with this product according to the FDA.  Basic Food Flavors had processing equipment in their Las Vegas plant that tested positive for salmonella a few weeks ago, resulting in recalls of a variety of products.  These products include seasoning products, gravy mixes, prepared salad products, snacks and snack mixes, sauces and marinades, soup and dip mixes, spread products and some frozen foods.  Brand names included in this recall are Trader Joe’s, Reser’s, Giant Eagle, Casa Solana, McCormick, Durkee, Weber, Pringles, Quaker, CVS, Herr’s, Rouses Louisiana’s Best, Great Value, Follow Your Heart, Safeway and many others.

Consumers who have purchased the Barcel Tostachos are invited to contact the company at (800) 354-3372 between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Salmonella is a bacteria that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in certain individuals, although symptoms are usually mild in healthy people.  Young children, the frail or elderly or anyone with a compromised immune system may experience arterial infections, endocarditis and arthritis if the infection gets in to the bloodstream.

Those who suspect salmonella food poisoning should seek medical attention, especially those most at risk.  If you are injured and interested in consulting a Salmonella food poisoning attorney, consider contacting an attorney at Brown Chiari.

Recently, Heartland Foods, Inc. recalled all containers and sizes of coarse ground black pepper that is distributed from their 34th Street Indianapolis facility.  This comes suspiciously close to the recent recall of salami products recalled by Daniele due to salmonella contamination of its pepper coated products.

Since last July, people have become ill because of what was believed to be contaminated red and black pepper.  New York spice wholesaler Wholesome Spice Company recalled red pepper recently as well, and a wrongful death lawsuit was recently filed that was related to a 2009 salmonella outbreak that was linked to white pepper.  This pepper was produced by a California company, UF Union International Foods.

All of this raises a few questions about pepper, and just how many foods may really be affected.  How is Heartland linked to Daniele, and is this company supplied by Wholesome Spice?  Did the same exporter supply Wholesome Foods and Heartland?  Originally, black pepper was thought to be the cause of the salmonella contamination in Daniele products, but Wholesome has only recalled red pepper, leading us to wonder if black pepper should be recalled as well.

While Heartland only distributes to food producers and retailers, what foods may contain the contaminated black pepper?  Since the company does supply retailers and food producers, the black pepper could potentially be used as an ingredient in foods that are further processed.  If this is the case, what foods are potentially contaminated with salmonella food poisoning?  This problem may run much deeper than originally suspected.

Johnny’s french dip powdered au jus, which is distributed nationwide and sold in retail stores,  was recalled due to salmonella tainted hydrolyzed vegetable protein, and recently T. Marzetti Company recalled some of its chip and dip products because of possible contamination with salmonella.  In the case of T. Marzetti, were the products contaminated because of HVP, or pepper?  It looks like sometime in the future, we will begin to see a link between all of these ingredients and food product contamination.

Raymond Cirimele, a 55 year old Chicago resident, filed a lawsuit claiming that Daniele International, Wholesome Spice and Mincing Overseas Spice failed to prevent an outbreak.  A Missouri man also filed suit against Daniele and Wholesome recently.

Who knows when this will end?  Salmonella food poisoning is not usually serious in healthy individuals, but can pose major health risks in certain individuals.  If you suspect food poisoning after eating foods that are possibly tainted with salmonella, contact a New York food poisoning attorney to learn what rights you may have.

Brown Chiari is a team of experienced New York personal injury attorneys.