Unscrambling The Egg Mess: The Latest Developments

CDC updates numbers; FDA "warns" Wright County Egg, gives green light to Hillandale

Two weeks ago, CDC told me that it planned – "by the end of the week"– to release an update to its report on the Salmonella Enteritidis outbreak investigation. Yesterday, they delivered.

From May 1st to October 15, 2010, CDC estimates that 1,813 illnesses are likely to be associated with the consumption of Salmonella Enteritidis-contaminated eggs from Wright County Egg (also known as Quality Egg LLC) and Hillandale Farms of Iowa.

CDC typically receives approximately 1,369 reports of illnesses due to this very common strain of Salmonella during the May 1st to October 15th timeframe (based on a five-year average). This year, the agency has received 3,182 reports. The estimate of 1,813 illnesses represents the difference between this year's reports and the five-year average.

This graph, taken from the CDC investigation report, profiles the outbreak on a week-by-week basis. The solid line represents the five-year average number of cases.

The outbreak numbers appear to tail off during the last four weeks, but this is not necessarily the case. As the graph explains, the area in grey represents a time period during which new illnesses may have occurred but have not yet been diagnosed and reported to CDC.

What can we deduce from this graph?

1. The outbreak did not start on May 1st. It likely began much earlier – perhaps in February/March. The number of cases per week appears to start tracking noticeably above the baseline average as early as the last week of January.
2. The outbreak peaked in June/July. CDC identified the outbreak in July, when it was already at its peak. The number of cases began to drop off in August, even before the first recall was initiated.
3. The outbreak did not end with the August recalls of eggs from Wright County Egg and Hillandale Farms. Even in mid-September, the number of reported cases continued to track well above the 5-year average baseline.

What has FDA been doing?

Hillandale Farms of Iowa:- FDA performed a follow-up inspection of Hillandale's West Union facility from October 13 to 15th, and has permitted Hillandale to resume the distribution of shell eggs, based on the following understanding:

• Hillandale's agreement to clean and disinfect houses 1 & 2 prior to repopulation;
• Hillandale's commitment to comply with the requirements of the Egg Safety Rule, including egg testing from houses with environmental Salmonella-positives;
• FDA's confirmation of the corrections to the problems noted in the agency's August 2010 inspection (see FDA-483 report)
• Consistent negative Salmonella Enteritidis test results from the environment and from eggs at houses 3, 5 and 7 in the West Union facility.
• Commitment not to ship table eggs from houses 4, 6, 8 & 9 until they go through four rounds of egg testing. These eggs will be held and shipped once all four rounds of testing are completed satisfactorily.
• Monthly environmental testing of houses 4, 6, 8 & 9 for the life of the current flock.

Wright County Egg (Quality Egg, LLC):- FDA issued a Warning Letter to Austin Decoster, the owner of Quality Egg LLC on October 15th, based on the agency's inspection report and its subsequent discussions with the Company. It's clear from the Warning Letter that FDA is not yet satisfied with Decoster's response to the agency's findings. After reciting a summary of the deviations noted in its FDA-483 report, FDA closed with the following statements:

This letter is not intended to be an all-inclusive list of violations at your facility. You are responsible for ensuring that your firm operates in compliance with the Act, the shell egg regulation, and the PHS Act. You also have a responsibility to use procedures to prevent further violations.

You should take prompt and aggressive actions to eliminate the Salmonella Enteritidis contamination and the observations described in this letter. Failure to take prompt corrective action may result in regulatory action being initiated by the Food and Drug Administration without further notice. These actions include, but are not limited to, seizure and/or injunction.

FDA is in receipt of your response dated October 5,2010, to the FDA-483 and additional information you submitted reflecting ongoing discussions with the agency of your corrective actions. We acknowledge your commitment to correcting the deviations and will verify your corrections via inspection.

As for the rest of the shell egg industry, FDA has begun its first round of "routine" inspections under the new Egg Safety Rule. I reported two weeks ago, that the first inspections were completed in Maine in late September. The focus then shifted back to the Midwest. FDA has not indicated any plans to release the results of these inspections – unless, of course, they result in recalls or warning letters.

Until FDA decides to release the results of its inspections, our household is sticking with Eggland's Best!

If you would like to receive automatic email alerts for all new articles posted on eFoodAlert, please click here or submit your request using the sidebar link. Please include "subscribe eFoodAlert" in the subject line.

Unscrambling The Egg Mess: Where Are We Now?

A recap and unofficial update on the US Salmonella Enteritidis shell egg outbreak

At the end of this week, CDC plans to release an update on its investigation of this outbreak. The agency expects to issue a final update in late November – around Thanksgiving.

One day soon – perhaps this week, according to my FDA contact – FDA might release an update on its outbreak investigation.

For the moment, this is where things stand.

The Numbers

• 1,608 lab-confirmed illnesses linked to shell eggs between May 1 and September 14, 2010
• 29 restaurant or event clusters of illnesses reported in 11 states
• 15 of the 29 cluster venues were supplied with eggs from Wright County Egg in Galt, IA (WCE)
• the number of illnesses peaked in June/July, but continued to track above baseline at least through August
• 7 Salmonella Enteritidis-contaminated environmental samples – six from Wright County Egg and one from Hillandale – have been found by FDA. All seven are a genetic match for the outbreak strain

The Traceback, The Recalls and The FDA Investigation Timeline

• August 6:- FDA conducted a traceback investigation on three illness cluster venues: one each in Minnesota, Colorado and California
• August 9:- FDA contacted WCE after identifying the shell egg producer as the source of eggs in the three illness clusters
• August 12:- FDA began inspections at WCE in Galt, IA
• August 13:- WCE issued its first recall notice of eggs from three farms
• August 17:- The secondary recalls issued by customers of WCE and Hillandale began
• August 18:- WCE expanded its recall to include eggs from two additional farms
• August 19:- FDA began inspections at Hillandale Farms of Iowa
• August 20:- Hillandale issued recall notice
• August 26:- In a media teleconference, FDA reported finding 4 Salmonella Enteritidis-contaminated environmental samples from the WCE inspections. Work on the majority of the 600 environmental samples taken during those inspections was still in progress.
• August 30:- FDA released to the public its Form 483 Inspection Observations reports for both WCE and Hillandale, after first having issued the reports to both egg producers. Two additional Salmonella Enteritidis-contaminated samples were added to the list – including one from Hillandale Farms – bringing the total to six contaminated samples, with work on the remainder of the 600 samples still in progress.
• September 20:- CDC mentioned in its Investigation Update that a seventh Salmonella Enteritidis-contaminated environmental sample was found.
• September 22:- The House Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations heard testimony from two outbreak victims, from the owners of Wright County Egg and Hillandale Farms, and from the FDA. A transcript of the hearing, together with supplementary exhibits and documents is available on the Subcommittee web page.

What Next?

FDA is still working through the 600 environmental samples taken during its inspections of Wright County Egg and Hillandale Farms. The agency has not said how many of those samples are still in progress. FDA did not include any shell eggs in the 600 samples from these producers.

I have been told by Ira Allen (FDA Office of Public Affairs) that FDA has begun its inspection program under the new Egg Rule. According to Mr. Allen, the first of those inspections were completed in Maine in late September. While Mr. Allen did not identify the target of the Maine inspection, my guess is that FDA focused first on Quality Egg of New England, LLC (Turner, ME), which has ties to the DeCoster family, the owners of Wright County Egg. The next inspections – most likely already underway – are planned for the Midwest.

FDA has not said whether it plans to release the results of its Egg Rule inspections. Let's hope that we don't have to wait for more recall notices in order to find out which egg farms have been inspected.

If you would like to receive automatic email alerts for all new articles posted on eFoodAlert, please click here or submit your request using the sidebar link. Please include "subscribe eFoodAlert" in the subject line.

Unscrambling The Egg Mess: Playing The Odds

Waiter, I think that there's a Salmonella in my egg!

When the British prepared their egg safety plan and wanted to know what proportion of the country's eggs contained Salmonella, they sampled eggs and tested them in the lab. And, after several years, when they wanted to know what impact the program had on the incidence of Salmonella in eggs, they sampled more eggs and tested them.

Based on the analysis of egg samples in the lab, the UK Food Standards Agency was able to show that their intervention resulted in a three-fold improvement. The frequency of Salmonella-contaminated 6-packs of eggs dropped from 1 in 100 (1%) in 1996 to 1 in 290 (0.34%) in 2004.

When the Australians wanted to determine the status of Salmonella contamination in their domestic egg supply, they sampled and tested 30,000 eggs – 10,000 for exterior shell contamination and 20,000 for internal contamination. Not one of the 30,000 eggs was contaminated with Salmonella.

When the US Department of Agriculture wanted to determine the annual fraction of eggs contaminated with Salmonella Enteritidis in the United States, they decided that conducting real-life sampling and testing would be too expensive. So the agency put pen to paper – or electrons to computer drives – and developed a statistical model using data from the scientific literature.

The computer model came up with a contamination incidence estimate of anywhere from 1 in 12,000 eggs to 1 in 30,000 eggs. The "most likely" estimate was 1 Salmonella Enteritidis-contaminated egg in 20,000. That number, which was based on literature reports from the 1990s and was published in 2000, has been treated as a hard number ever since.

The USDA "researchers" tested their computer model against data obtained from a single unpublished random survey conducted at the University of California-Davis in 1998. The California survey tested 1416 pooled egg samples (20 eggs in each pool) and found one Salmonella Enteritidis-positive pool – assumed by the researchers to be equivalent to one positive egg out of 28,000.

Was the USDA's approach appropriate? This is what the Australian's had to say about the need to carry out real-world investigations:

"To provide a meaningful estimate of exposure, it is essential to have data on the prevalence of Salmonella contaminated eggs (internal and external contamination).

Directly comparing results from published surveys is difficult due to differences in sample sizes and methodologies. For example testing for surface contamination of egg shells can be undertaken by swabbing a section of the shell or by rinsing the entire shell surface. Egg contents can be sampled aseptically by separating the contents without contact with the shell surface. Alternatively Salmonella can be isolated by crushing the egg, allowing contact of the egg contents with shell, and isolating from the mixture."

After a number of delays, FDA at last has begun its first round of egg inspections under the newly implemented Egg Safety Rule. But without real baseline data to compare against, how will anyone be able to determine whether and to what extent the plan is working? By carrying out another hypothetical statistical analysis?

If you would like to receive automatic email alerts for all new articles posted on eFoodAlert, please click here or submit your request using the sidebar link. Please include "subscribe eFoodAlert" in the subject line.

Wright County Egg Recall: Consolidated List of Recalled Eggs

Original post: August 18, 2010; Updated September 25, 2010 with additional recall information

The list of recalled brands posted below will be updated as additional distributors, wholesalers, retailers and food service operators release their recall notices. Please also check FDA's searchable database for egg recalls, which is being updated regularly.

Eggs recalled on August 13th were packed in in varying sizes of cartons (6-egg cartons, dozen egg cartons, 18-egg cartons) with Julian dates ranging from 136 to 225 and plant numbers 1026, 1413 and 1946. Dates and codes can be found stamped on the end of the egg carton. The plant number begins with the letter P and then the number. The Julian date follows the plant number, for example: P-1946 223.

Wright County Egg expanded its recall on August 18th to include additional eggs from plant numbers 1720 and 1942. The recalled eggs were distributed to food wholesalers, distribution centers and food service companies in California, Arizona, Missouri, Minnesota, Texas, Georgia, Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Nevada, Iowa, Illinois, Utah, Nebraska, Arkansas, Wisconsin and Oklahoma for redistribution nationwide. The eggs included in this expanded recall were packed in varying sizes of cartons (6, 12 and 18) in addition to loose eggs for institutional use and repackaging. Julian dates range from 136 to 229.

Walmart released the following statement on August 21st:

“Customer safety is a top priority at Walmart and Sam’s Club and that includes offering safe, high quality foods at the most affordable prices. We are concerned about the nationwide Salmonella outbreak linked to shell eggs and are monitoring this situation very closely.

“Neither Walmart’s Great Value brand nor Sam’s Club eggs are impacted by the recall announced earlier by Wright County Eggs.

“Four of Walmart’s egg suppliers, Sparboe Farms, Dean Foods, Hillandale Farms and Cal-Maine Foods, announced recalls of eggs that were sourced from or linked to Wright County Eggs. As soon as we have been notified, we have promptly pulled the eggs from our stores’ shelves. These recalls have affected nearly 630 stores in 20 states (CO, MT, ND, SD, NE, WI, MN, MO, NM, TX, IL, IN, IA, KY, NY, OH, PA, WV, MI and WY).

“We continue to work with our suppliers to monitor the situation and will take the appropriate steps to remove affected products from our store shelves. Customers who suspect they may have eggs associated with the recall are encouraged to return the product to their local store for verification.”

The California Department of Public Health has released a list of all locations (including retailers, restaurants, caterers and food service operators) that were supplied with recalled eggs. This list was last updated on September 14, 2010.

On August 27, 2010, Sparboe Farms (Litchfield, MN) recalled shell eggs produced by Wright County Egg and by Hillandale Farms of Iowa and packaged by Sparboe Farms under several brands. The recalled eggs were stamped with Plant ID#1167 (Julian dates 214, 215, 219) or Plant ID#1906 (Julian dates 211 and 218). Eggs affected by this recall were distributed to grocery stores and foodservice companies in Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana and Minnesota.

Note: Eggs produced by Hillandale Farms of Iowa and packaged by NuCal may have been sold in Sam's Club stores in California and Nevada.

• Albertson:- Albertson's store brand, packaged and recalled by Wright County Egg on August 13th and August 18th. Albertson's stores that are affected by this recall are located in Southern California (owned by SUPERVALU) and Front Range Albertson's stores in Colorado. No other Albertson's stores carried the eggs recalled by Wright County Egg. Moark LLC (Fontana, CA) has recalled eggs supplied from Hillandale Farms of Iowa and repackaged under the Albertson's brand name (Albertsons Large 1 dz and 18 ct; Plant #1156; Julian date 187) for distribution in Las Vegas (NV) and Southern California. Albertson's Large white eggs also were packaged in various configurations by Sparboe Farms (Plant #1167; Julian dates 214, 215, 219).
• Alta Dena Dairy:- Loose 15 dozen units, recalled by Luberski, Inc. Identified by plant #1026, 1413 or 1946; Julian codes 209-224.
• Bayview:- Bayview Large 5 dozen (UPC 7-17544-30172-1. Plant P-1686, Julian dates 142-149; and plant P-1686K, Julian dates 195-196) produced by Wright County Egg and by Hillandale Farms of Iowa, respectively and packaged by NuCal Foods. The recalled eggs were distributed to food wholesalers and retailers in California and Nevada. These eggs may have been sold at Sam's Club stores in California and Nevada.
• Becky:- Becky Large 5 dozen (UPC 0-72279-00010-4. Plant P-1292 & P1091; Julian dates 139-161). Produced by Hillandale Farms of Iowa and packaged by NuCal Foods. Distributed to food wholesalers and retailers in California and Nevada. These eggs may have been sold at Sam's Club stores in California and Nevada.
• Boomsma:- Recalled by Wright County Egg on August 13th and August 18th.
• Cal Egg:- Cal Egg Large 5 dozen (UPC 0-72279-00110-1. Plant P-1292 & P1091; Julian dates 139-194). Produced by Hillandale Farms of Iowa and packaged by NuCal Foods. Distributed to food wholesalers and retailers in California and Nevada. Cal Egg Large 5-dozen eggs, produced by Hillandale Farms of Iowa and packaged by NuCal were sold in Costco Warehouse stores in the San Francisco Bay Area.
• Cal-Maine Foods, Inc:- Cal-Maine recalls specific Julian dates of shell eggs purchased on May 31, 2010 from Hillandale Farms of Iowa and repackaged by Cal-Maine's Benton County, Arkansas facility. The recalled eggs (identified by Plant #1382) were distributed to food wholesalers and retailers in Oklahoma and Arkansas.
• Cardenas Market:- Recalled by Wright County Egg (Plant #1026; Julian dates 136-228); distributed to Cardenas Market stores in California and Nevada.
• Challenge Dairy:- Loose 15 dozen units, recalled by Luberski, Inc. Identified by plant #1026, 1413 or 1946; Julian codes 209-224.
• Country Eggs, Inc.:- Country Eggs, Inc. recalls specific Julian dates of shell eggs produced by Wright County Egg. Eggs affected by the recall were 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. Julian code dates are 216-221.
• Dean Foods:- Eggs were sourced from Wright County Egg. Some Dean Foods eggs were sold at Walmart (but not Sam's Club) stores in sixteen Mountain, Midwest, South and Mid-Atlantic states.
• Driftwood Dairy:- Loose 15 dozen units, recalled by Luberski, Inc. Identified by plant #1026, 1413 or 1946; Julian codes 209-224.
• Dutch Farms:- Distributed to Walgreens stores in Iowa, Minnesota, Kansas, Nebraska, Missouri, South Dakota and Arkansas. Wright County Eggs used unauthorized egg cartons to package and sell eggs under the Dutch Farms name without Dutch Farms knowledge. Dutch Farms is seeking legal representation. Recalled by Wright County Egg on August 13th and August 18th.
• Farmer's Gems:- Moark LLC (Fontana, CA) has recalled eggs supplied from Hillandale Farms of Iowa and repackaged under the Farmer's Gems brand name (Farmer's Gems Large 1 dzt; Plant #1156; Julian date 187) for distribution in Las Vegas (NV) and Southern California.
• Farm Fresh:- Packaged and recalled by Wright County Egg on August 13th and August 18th.
• Glenview Farms:- The Lund Egg Co. (Woodville, WI) has issued a Class I Recall on eggs including some Glenview Farms product. This brand is included in the Wright County Egg expanded recall notice dated August 18th. Glenview Farms eggs also were produced by Wright County Egg and Hillandale Farms and packaged by Sparboe Farms in 6-egg, dozen-egg, 18-egg, and 2 1/2 dozen-egg cartons, in 2 1/2 dozen and 5-dozen egg sleeves, in 15-dozen bulk cubes and in 30-dozen cases. Eggs are identified by Plant #1167 and Julian dates of 214, 215 or 219 and were distributed in Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana and Minnesota.
• Hidden Villa Ranch:- Loose 15 dozen units, recalled by Luberski, Inc. Identified by plant #1026, 1413 or 1946; Julian codes 209-224.
• Hillandale:- Recalled by Hillandale Farms of Iowa. The recalled eggs are packaged in various sizes cartons and cases, and can be identified with plant numbers P1860 (Julian dates 099-230) or P1663 (Julian dates 137-230). Some Hillandale eggs were sold at Walmart (but not Sam's Club) stores in sixteen Mountain, Midwest, South and Mid-Atlantic states. Hillandale Farms of Iowa eggs also were available in 23 Costco warehouses (Costco item #828939, 2/1.5 dozen eggs; Costco item #2027, 7.5 dozen eggs) in Minnesota, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin and Nebraska.
• James Farms:- Packaged and recalled by Wright County Egg on August 18th.
• Kemps:- Packaged by and recalled by Wright County Egg on August 13th and August 18th.
• Liborio Market:- Produced by Wright County Egg and Hillandale Farms and packaged by Sparboe Farms in 6-egg, dozen-egg, 18-egg, and 2 1/2 dozen-egg cartons, in 2 1/2 dozen and 5-dozen egg sleeves, in 15-dozen bulk cubes and in 30-dozen cases. Eggs are identified by Plant #1167 and Julian dates of 214, 215 or 219 and were distributed in Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana and Minnesota.
• Luberski, Inc:- Luberski Inc. (Fullerton, CA) recalls specific Julian dates of shell eggs produced by Wright County Egg of Galt, Iowa. The eggs were distributed to food wholesalers, retail centers and food service companies in California and Nevada. Eggs were packaged under the CRF 20 and 30 egg overwrap units and Loose 15 dozen units. No Retail Carton Eggs of any kind are affected including CRF and Alta Dena Brand Name. Loose 15 dozen units affected were under Alta Dena Dairy, Driftwood Dairy, Hidden Villa Ranch, and Challenge Dairy from plant codes p-1026, p-1413, and p-1946. Julian code dates are 209-224. Dates and codes can be found on the label.
• Lucerne:- Lucerne Foods recalls Lucerne Grade AA eggs in 12-count and 18-count cartons (packed and recalled by Wright County Egg), sold at Safeway Food & Drug stores in Northern California and Northern Nevada (“Sell By” dates of June 14, 2010 to Sep 11, 2010, followed by Plant code numbers P1026, P1413 or P1946); and in Colorado, New Mexico, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming (“Sell By” dates of June 29, 2010 to Sep 12, 2010, followed by Plant code number P1026). Lucerne Large 5 dz. (UPC 0-21130-03155-9. Plant P-1292; Julian dates 139-210). Produced by Hillandale Farms of Iowa and packaged by NuCal Foods. Distributed to food wholesalers and retailers in California and Nevada.
• Lund:- The Lund Egg Co. (Woodville, WI) has issued a Class I Recall on eggs including some Glenview Farms product. Lund brand eggs were recalled by Wright County Egg on August 13th and August 18th.
• Market Pantry (Target):- Market Pantry X-large, white eggs, produced by Hillandale Farms of Iowa and repackaged by Sparboe Farms (recalled September 3, 2010).
• Mi Pueblo:- Mi Pueblo Large 5 dozen (UPC 4-01660-00100-8. Plant P-1292 & P-1091; Julian dates 139-161). Produced by Hillandale Farms of Iowa and packaged by NuCal Foods. Distributed to food wholesalers and retailers in California and Nevada. These eggs may have been sold at Sam's Club stores in California and Nevada.
• Moark:- Moark LLC (Fontana, CA) has recalled eggs supplied from Hillandale Farms of Iowa and repackaged (Large Loose foodservice packs; Plant #1156; Julian date 187) for distribution in Las Vegas (NV) and Southern California.
• Mountain Dairy:- Mountain Dairy AA Grade Large Eggs, 18 ct., AA Grade Large Eggs, 12 CT, and AA Grade Medium Eggs, 5 dozen, sold in Food4Less, Foodsco, and Ralphs stores (members of the Kroger family of stores); Mountain Dairy Medium 5dz (UPC 0-11110-89969-9; Plant P-1951; Julian dates 193-208) were produced by Wright County Egg and packed by Nucal Foods. Moark LLC (Fontana, CA) has recalled eggs supplied from Hillandale Farms of Iowa and repackaged under the Mountain Dairy brand name (Mountain Dairy Large 1 dz; Plant #1156; Julian date 187) for distribution in Las Vegas (NV) and Southern California.
• Nulaid:- Nulaid Medium 5dz (Plant P-1091 & P-1951; Julian dates of 167-174 and 195-210, respectively); produced by Wright County Egg and packed by NuCal Foods. Nulaid Large 2.5 dz (UPC 0-71230-02130-1. Plant P-1292 & P-1091; Julian dates 139-161). Nulaid Large 5dz (UPC 0-71230-02130-2. Plant P-1292 & P-1091; Julian dates 139-210). Nulaid Large eggs were produced by Hillandale Farms of Iowa and packaged by NuCal Foods. Distributed to food wholesalers and retailers in California and Nevada. These eggs may have been sold at Sam's Club stores in California and Nevada.
• Pacific Coast:- Produced and packaged by, and recalled by, Wright County Egg on August 18th.
• Ralph's:- Ralph's AA Grade Large Eggs, 12 ct., and AA Grade Large Eggs, 18 ct., sold in Food 4 Less, Foodsco, and Ralphs stores (members of the Kroger family of stores). The eggs were recalled by Wright County Egg on August 13th and August 18th.
• Sam's:- Sam's Bulk Pack 15 dz., (Plant #1382; Expiration date 6/29/10 to 7/16/10; various Julian date codes); supplied by Cal-Maine Foods, Inc.
• Shamrock Foods:- Produced by Wright County Egg and Hillandale Farms and packaged by Sparboe Farms in 6-egg, dozen-egg, 18-egg, and 2 1/2 dozen-egg cartons, in 2 1/2 dozen and 5-dozen egg sleeves, in 15-dozen bulk cubes and in 30-dozen cases. Eggs are identified by Plant #1167 and Julian dates of 214, 215 or 219 and were distributed in Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana and Minnesota.
• Shoreland:- Packaged and recalled by Wright County Egg.
• Shurfresh:- Produced by Wright County Egg and Hillandale Farms and packaged by Sparboe Farms in dozen-egg cartons. Extra-large eggs are identified by Plant #1906 and Julian dates of 211 or 218, and were distributed in Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana and Minnesota.
• Sparboe Farms:- Eggs were sourced from Wright County Egg. Some Sparboe Farms eggs were sold at Walmart (but not Sam's Club) stores in sixteen Mountain, Midwest, South and Mid-Atlantic states. Sparboe Farms packaged eggs produced by Wright County Egg and Hillandale Farms and packaged them in 6-egg, dozen-egg, 18-egg, and 2 1/2 dozen-egg cartons, in 2 1/2 dozen and 5-dozen egg sleeves, in 15-dozen bulk cubes and in 30-dozen cases. Eggs are identified by Plant #1167 and Julian dates of 214, 215 or 219 and were distributed in Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana and Minnesota. Sparboe Farms expanded its recall on September 3rd to include X-large, white eggs, produced by Hillandale Farms and repackaged by Sparboe Farms.
• Sunny Farms:- Recalled by Hillandale Farms of Iowa. The recalled eggs are packaged in various sizes cartons and cases, and can be identified with plant numbers P1860 (Julian dates 099-230) or P1663 (Julian dates 137-230).
• Sunny Meadow:- Recalled by Hillandale Farms of Iowa. The recalled eggs are packaged in various sizes cartons and cases, and can be identified with plant numbers P1860 (Julian dates 099-230) or P1663 (Julian dates 137-230).
• Sunshine:- Sunshine Extra Large Eggs (sku 01175), sold in Trader Joe's stores in Southern California and Las Vegas, NV
• Sun Valley:- Sun Valley Medium 5dz (UPC 6-48065-11432-6; PlantP-1951; Julian dates195-209); produced by Wright County Egg and packed by NuCal Foods. Distributed to food wholesalers and retailers in California and Nevada.
• Trafficanda:- Trafficanda Egg Ranch recalls Medium, Large, X Large and Jumbo cartons, 5-dozen Medium over Wrap and 20-Count Over Wrap shell eggs produced by Wright County Egg (Julian dates 136-229; Plant numbers 1026, 1413, 1720, 1942 and 1946). The eggs were distributed to grocery stores and food service companies in California.
• Wagon Trail:- Wagon Trail Large 5 dz. Produced by Hillandale Farms of Iowa and packaged by Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. (Plant ID#1382; Julian Date 150).
• West Creek:- Recalled by Hillandale Farms of Iowa. The recalled eggs are packed in 15 and 30-dozen tray packs and can be identified with plant numbers P1860 (Julian dates 099-230) or P1663 (Julian dates 137-230). The loose eggs may also be repackaged by customers. Some of the eggs were supplied by Cal-Maine and bear Plant number 1382 and Julian Date 150.
• Wholesome Farms:- Recalled by Hillandale Farms of Iowa. The recalled eggs are packed in 15 and 30-dozen tray packs and can be identified with plant numbers P1860 (Julian dates 099-230) or P1663 (Julian dates 137-230). The loose eggs may also be repackaged by customers.
• Yucaipa Valley:- Moark LLC (Fontana, CA) has recalled eggs supplied from Hillandale Farms of Iowa and repackaged under the Yucaipa Valley brand name (Yucaipa Valley Large 1 dz and 18 ct; Plant #1156; Julian date 187) for distribution in Las Vegas (NV) and Southern California.

The following companies/brands have announced that they are unaffected by the Wright County Egg recall:

• BJ's Wholesale Club:- "Eggs sold at BJ's are not part of the recent recall."
• Big Y World Class Market:- "All eggs from Big Y are safe and are not part of this recall."
• Brookshire's Food & Pharmacy:- "Eggs at Brookshire’s and Super 1 Foods stores are NOT included in the recent recall involving a producer in Iowa. All our eggs are supplied by Pilgrim’s Pride in Pittsburg, Texas, and Cal-Maine Foods in Jackson, Miss." (Note: This statement was posted by Brookshire and Super 1 Foods before Cal-Maine issued its news release.)
• Eggland's Best:- "Eggland’s Best eggs are not involved in any recall that you might have heard about. Eggland's Best eggs are NOT PRODUCED in Iowa.Eggland's Best has the most comprehensive food safety quality assurance program. EB eggs are SAFE TO CONSUME."
• Food City:- "Food City has NOT been affected by the egg recall."
• Giant Food, LLC:- "Giant brand and Nature's Promise brand eggs are not implicated in the recent recall of shell eggs. We also do not sell any other brands of eggs implicated in the recall."
• Hannaford:- "Hannaford Supermarkets' egg suppliers have not been affected by the August 2010 recall stemming from two large farms in Iowa. We are committed to food safety and we will continue to closely monitor the situation."
• Harris Teeter:- "Harris Teeter is NOT affected by the recent recall on fresh eggs. We source our eggs from ISE America in Newberry, SC. Please be assured that our eggs are safe."
• H-E-B:- "H-E-B is proud of our commitment to the highest standards of food safety. All egg products in H-E-B stores are safe to eat and are unaffected by the recall. H-E-B buys the vast majority of our eggs from Texas. Our vendors have trace ability, and they have sent letters of verification that they are not impacted by the recall. Our buyers continue to work close with our vendors and follow the situation."
• Hy-Vee, Inc:- "Please note that our Hy-Vee distribution facility does NOT purchase eggs from either Wright County Egg or Hillandale Farms. As far as we have been able to determine, none of the eggs affected by either recall were distributed to or sold in Hy-Vee stores."
• Ingles Markets Inc:- "Ingles Eggs are locally produced and are not a part of any national recall."
• Michael Foods:- "The eggs sourced for Michael Foods are not affected by the recent Wright County Egg and Hillandale Shell Egg recalls.Michael Foods sources eggs from its own farms and various suppliers. All of the eggs Michael Foods receives are pasteurized using a process that exceeds the USDA minimum pasteurization requirements ensuring destruction of salmonella. Therefore, none of the Michael Foods eggs sourced are affected by the recent recall." Please note that Michael Foods is the producer of AllWhites® liquid egg whites and Better'n Eggs® egg substitutes.
• Organic Valley:- "Eggs from Organic Valley farms are solely packaged under our brand name, Organic Valley. Organic Valley does not have any egg producers in Wright County, IA. nor are we affiliated with the producers or processors impacted by these recalls."
• Price Chopper:- "Price Chopper eggs are not involved in the recent egg recall. The recall involves eggs produced at Wright County Eggs in Iowa. We do not do business with this supplier nor do any of our suppliers."
• Publix:- "We have confirmed with all of our egg suppliers that Publix has not received any eggs that originated from Wright County Egg of Galt, Iowa. We continue to stay in contact with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to understand the national impact of the Salmonella enteritidis outbreak in shell eggs."
• Save Mart Supermarkets:- The stores of Save Mart Supermarkets – Save Mart, S-Mart Foods, Lucky, and FoodMaxx – and their customers are largely unaffected by the shell egg recall. The only eggs that would have been included were Bayview brand, had sell-by dates of June 20-27, 2010, and were sold in packages of five dozen. Eggs with the Sunnyside Farms brand are not involved in this recall.

• ShopRite:- "Eggs sold at ShopRite are not affected by the Wright County Egg recall."
• Stop & Shop:- "Stop & Shop brand and Nature's Promise brand eggs are not implicated in the recent recall of shell eggs. We also do not sell any other brands of eggs implicated in the recall."
• Tops, P&C and BiLo:- "Shell eggs sold at all Tops, P&C and BiLo locations remain unaffected by the recent nation recall of millions of shell eggs. Eggs sold at Tops are locally sourced from Kreher’s Farm, located in western New York."
• Walmart:- "Walmart Private Brand eggs are unaffected by the recall..."
• Wegmans:- "Eggs sold at Wegmans do not come from Wright County Egg and are not included in the recall.All eggs sold at Wegmans (Wegmans brand traditional, organic, and Omega-3, and Eggland's Best) come from farms in New York state."

In addition to the recall notices listed above, U.S. Foodservice has reported that some eggs supplied to restaurants and food service customers by U.S. Foodservice, Sysco Corp. and Restaurant Depot (Jetro), are included in the Wright County Egg recall.

Please check back from time to time for updates to this recall list.

If you would like to receive automatic email alerts for all new articles posted on eFoodAlert, please click here or submit your request using the sidebar link. Please include "subscribe eFoodAlert" in the subject line.

Target and Sparboe Farms Turn Deaf Ears To Egg Complaint

Local health department not much better

An eFoodAlert reader shares her story

It can be hard for some people to swallow the oft-quoted statistic that only one out of every 38 cases (just 2.6%) of Salmonella food poisoning gets reported. Nevertheless, the vast majority of Salmonella victims suffer in silence or, even worse, are thwarted in their attempts to report suspect food.

Several victims of the current Salmonella Enteritidis outbreak have shared their experiences and frustrations with eFoodAlert readers. Sandy's story, in particular, illustrates what can happen when a consumer tries to report a problem.

On August 21st, Sandy wrote,

I have eggs that I purchased at Target yesterday that were produced and packed by Sparboe Farms P-1674 223 (this number is not on the list). Husband had 4 for breakfast this morning and now has severe case of diarrhea and stomach cramps. This is the only thing he has eaten and is not feeling well at all. Target said their eggs are not on the recall list. We are not eating the rest of the eggs, he will probably have to get into the doctor. I don't think this recall is over.

Five days later (August 26th), she sent me the following email:

What I find interesting about this egg recall is that the 18 count carton I have is stamped with "Packed by Sparboe Farms P-1173" on the top of the carton, but on the side of the carton it is stamped with P-1674. I was the one who wrote on your blog that my husband got ill from eating 4 eggs from this carton purchased at Target. I did not notice the different numbers until today - I find this very interesting, why two different numbers?

To date, Target still doesn't want to deal with this and hasn't pulled any eggs from their shelves. I don't know if others got sick, or if they just cooked them well and just don't know they were bad.

I still have the eggs if you have anyone that wants to test them. I live in (deleted to maintain privacy). I did not get anywhere with Target - but I did not call their corporate office, maybe I should.

And later that same day, in response to my question,

He [Sandy's husband] did not go to the doctor, so it wasn't confirmed by a doctor. He just got better on his own. I do still have the eggs though and called the health department today.

How is it that the carton I have is labeled from a plant in Iowa & a plant in Minnesota? Did the chicken cross state lines and lay an egg? My carton is labeled #1173 on the top of the carton, yet labeled 1674 on the side of the carton - so, where did these eggs come from?

On August 27th, Sandy thought she was making some progress.

The health department called me today. I am working with them. I also spoke with someone from Sparboe Egg today, they are supposed to get back to me. They want to test the eggs and are supposed to get back to me before I go out of town and have someone locally from the FDA or health department test the eggs. I should have gotten his name, but I will call him back if I don't hear from him in the next hour or so.

But, when I touched base with Sandy a couple of days ago, she had this to report:

I am totally disgusted with Sparboe - they never called me back regarding testing of the eggs. They gave me a song and dance about how they take every complaint very seriously and would make sure they got back to me, but they never returned my call and made sure the eggs were tested. I am disappointed in them.

Thanks for following up with me, but at this point, I really don't think Sparboe intends to do anything about it. The local health department checked the Target to make sure the lot number I purchased was no longer on the shelves. They have been removed, so they were no longer concerned - they have not tested my eggs either.

On August 20th (the day before Sandy's first message), I spoke with Target spokesperson Jenn Glass about the Sparboe Farms connection. She emailed the following statements to me on August 23rd:

Our egg supplier, Sparboe Farms, which uses the NuCal facility (Est. 1951) for some of our Market Pantry egg items, has confirmed that none of the Wright County Eggs brought into that facility were used for the Market Pantry label. All Market Pantry product produced by NuCal for Sparboe Farms involves only “in-line” eggs that directly supply the facility and does not include any outside product from Wright County Eggs that are subject to recall. Information on recalled egg items is provided within the FDA.gov website.

Target does not carry any eggs impacted by the current recall. This includes the Hillandale brands.

Sparboe Farms was slower to respond to my inquiries. On August 20th, I asked Sparboe Farms for their reaction to Walmart's report that some Sparboe Farms eggs had been recalled. Eight days later – and one day after Sparboe Farms posted its first "public" recall notice – I received a reply from the Valerie Engler, Sparboe's Communications Specialist.

"Please note," Ms. Engler wrote, "that no eggs shipped to Target that were packed by Sparboe Farms are listed as part of the withdrawal that Sparboe Farms participated in." An interesting statement, given that my original question did not mention Target. She must have been reading my blog posts.

On September 3rd, Sparboe Farms "clarified" its August 27th recall notice to include a limited number of eggs that were packed under Target's Market Pantry brand. The clarification including the statement that, "there have been no reports of confirmed consumer illness relating to Sparboe Farms product." Note the very specific mention of "confirmed consumer illness," which begs the question as to how many anecdotal illness reports Sparboe has received.

Sandy's eggs – the ones that made her husband sick – were not included in the September 3rd recall, and still have not been tested by anyone.

In an ideal world, Target would have worked harder to investigate the possibility that their eggs were making people sick, even in the absence of a recall notice from their supplier.

In an ideal world, Sparboe Farms would have jumped on the chance to test Sandy's eggs in order to prevent the risk of additional illnesses.

But we don't live in an ideal world. Both companies closed their eyes and ears to the illness reports posted on this blog and elsewhere.

Whereas the actions of Target and Sparboe were merely self-serving, the minimal response of Sandy's local health department was unconscionable. Someone from that department should have been on Sandy's doorstep within 24 hours to collect her remaining eggs for lab testing. There is no excuse for the health department to have washed its hands of her complaint once its investigator found that no eggs from that particular batch were still available for sale at Target.

Is it any wonder that the true incidence of food poisoning is grossly under-reported, even in the midst of a widely publicized national outbreak?

If you would like to receive automatic email alerts for all new articles posted on eFoodAlert, please click here or submit your request using the sidebar link. Please include "subscribe eFoodAlert" in the subject line.

Sparboe Farms Expands Egg Recall

New recall includes Target's Market Pantry eggs (updated with link to recall notice)

Sparboe Farms announced late yesterday that it was "clarifying" its earlier egg recalls to include X-large, white eggs packaged under the Market Pantry and Sparboe Farms brand names., because they may be contaminated with Salmonella.

The eggs were produced by Hillandale Farms of Iowa and repackaged by Sparboe Farms. All of the eggs are identified with Plant ID#1906

NEW: The "clarified" recall includes:

• Market Pantry X-large 1-dz cartons: Julian dates 211, 218, 219. Delivered to a limited number of Target stores. Affected stores may be located in Arkansas, Iowa, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas and Wisconsin.
• Sparboe Farms X-large 18-count cartons: Julian date 219. May have been distributed in Nebraska, Iowa and South Dakota.
• X-large, loose 15-dozen: Julian date 219. Potentially distributed in Illinois and Iowa.

While the recall notice states that no confirmed illnesses have been linked to Sparboe's eggs, Target's Market Pantry eggs have been the focus of much attention on eFoodAlert since the first reports of the current Salmonella Enteritidis outbreak surfaced in mid-August. Several readers have reported that they (or one or more family members) became ill after eating Target's Market Pantry eggs.

Please contact your state or county health agency and FDA (click here for the FDA Consumer Complaint coordinator for your state) if you believe that you or a family member has become ill after consuming X-large white eggs packaged under the Sparboe Farms or Market Pantry brand names.

If you would like to receive automatic email alerts for all new articles posted on eFoodAlert, please click here or submit your request using the sidebar link. Please include "subscribe eFoodAlert" in the subject line.

Unscrambling The Egg Mess: What's Next?

CDC updates outbreak data; FDA discloses egg inspection plans; Congress plans hearings

CDC received a total of 2,508 reports of Salmonella Enteritidis between May 1st and August 31st. After subtracting the 1,039 "expected" cases for this time period, the agency has concluded that 1,469 reported illnesses are likely due to the contaminated egg outbreak that we have been reporting on for the last couple of weeks.

The agency is forced to use this indirect means of calculating the size of the current outbreak, because the "outbreak" strain of Salmonella Enteritidis is indistinguishable from the normal background strain, based on the standard PFGE genetic typing method used by CDC and state health labs.

According to Lola Russell, CDC Press Officer, agency scientists are experimenting with a sub-typing method known as MLVA (multiple-locus variable-number tandem repeat analysis). CDC does not expect the MLVA results to help to differentiate outbreak cases from background cases during the current investigation, but believes that the newer sub-typing method has the potential to help establish a data baseline for the future.

FDA Plans Egg Safety Rule Inspections

Starting this month, FDA will visit every egg facility that is subject to the Egg Safety Rule, which became effective in July 2010. The agency estimates that it will take approximately 15 months to make the rounds of the approximately 600 large (50,000+ laying hens) egg production facilities.

FDA will give priority to facilities that are potentially at greatest risk of problems, begging the question of how it will establish relative risk when it has never inspected any of the facilities. Here's how I would approach that problem:

• Priority #1: Any egg production facility associated with a confirmed consumer illness complaint or with an unusual number of complaints that were not lab-confirmed. An example would be Sparboe Farms in Iowa and Minnesota (see my posts about Target's Market Pantry eggs, which are supplied by Sparboe Farms).
• Priority #2: Any egg facility that was supplied eggs by Wright County Egg or Hillandale Farms of Iowa for repackaging.
• Priority #3: All other Iowa-based egg producers.
• Priority #4: Egg producers in states that do not have effective state-wide egg safety programs.
• Priority #5: Egg producers in the nine states that have effective state-wide egg safety programs.

Wright County Egg/Hillandale Farms investigation ongoing

The FDA investigation is far from over. The agency is still trying to determine where the Salmonella Enteritidis came from. Were the laying hens infected while they were in the pullet-raising facility? Was the Salmonella introduced through contaminated feed, or was the feed contaminated at Wright County Egg's feed mill? What role did birds (including escaped hens) and rodents play in introducing and spreading the pathogen?

FDA investigators returned to the scene of their investigations earlier this week, and there are unconfirmed reports that FBI agents also visited facilities belonging to Wright County Egg and Hillandale. According to a report in the Wall Street Journal online, an FDA spokesperson referred further questions to the U.S. attorney in Cedar Rapids, who couldn't be reached for comment.

Congress announces hearings

The House Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations has requested documents relating to the egg outbreak and recall from FDA, USDA, Wright County Egg and Hillandale Farms of Iowa in advance of a hearing scheduled for September 14th.

Lawsuits initiated

At least five lawsuits have been filed against Wright County Egg and Hillandale Farms of Iowa – four on behalf of clients of Marler Clark, and one by PritzkerOlsen. If past outbreaks are anything to go by, the number of lawsuits will increase significantly.

What role should consumers play?

FDA relies heavily on consumer complaints to bring problem processors to its attention. Consumers who have become ill within several hours to several days after having consumed eggs – especially, undercooked eggs – should contact their local or state health agency and the FDA consumer complaint line for their state. Save the egg carton and any remaining eggs to turn over to the state or FDA for testing and tracing.

If you would like to receive automatic email alerts for all new articles posted on eFoodAlert, please click here or submit your request using the sidebar link. Please include "subscribe eFoodAlert" in the subject line.

Salmonella Egg Outbreak: The State Of The States

A state-by-state report of Salmonella Enteritidis outbreak cases

(Original post August 25; updated September 3 with additional states reporting)

When a food-borne disease outbreak is caused by a rare strain of Salmonella – or any other pathogen – a relatively small cluster of illnesses is relatively easy to spot. But when a common strain is behind the outbreak, it can be much more difficult to detect an unusual pattern of illness reports. This, in fact, is what has happened in the egg outbreak.

Salmonella is a reportable disease When a doctor or a hospital encounters a patient who is infected with Salmonella, the illness must be reported to the appropriate agency – usually the state department of health – which transmits the report to CDC. It can easily take 2-3 weeks between the time that a person consumes a contaminated food until the time that CDC receives a report. Consider this:

1. The incubation period between the time that someone consumes Salmonella-contaminated food and the time he or she begins to experience symptoms can be as short as one day or as long as a week.
2. The ill person may wait several days before visiting a doctor or a hospital emergency room (if they do so at all).
3. It takes at least a couple of days for a stool sample to be processed in the lab and for Salmonella to be recovered.
4. It takes additional time for the Salmonella to be identified (ie., Salmonella Enteritidis, Salmonella Infantis, or one of some 2500+ other types)
5. Once the Salmonella has been identified, the next step is genetic profiling – the so-called PFGE (pulsed field gel electrophoresis) typing.
6. Only after all of this is done, can useful information be transmitted to CDC's PulseNet data base.

A small number of reports of an unusual Salmonella strain can be spotted with relative ease (as occurred with the Salmonella Newport alfalfa sprout outbreak earlier this year). But it takes a larger number of cases – enough to rise about the background "noise" level – for an outbreak to be recognized when a very common Salmonella strain is the culprit.

There is a very good reason why CDC has not yet reported a total of confirmed and suspect cases – it doesn't know what that total is. The agency is trying to differentiate between outbreak cases and background cases by taking genetic profiling of the Salmonella isolates to a more advanced level.

Until (and unless) CDC can pin down a specific genetic fingerprint for the outbreak strain, it will not know for certain which illnesses are related to this egg outbreak. Meanwhile, it will divulge only the total number of reported Salmonella Enteritidis illnesses nationwide, compared to the number that would be expected (based on the past five years).

As a result, the public has been left wondering which states are involved in this outbreak, and which ones have managed to dodge the dodgy eggs. To fill the knowledge gap, I have been canvassing state health departments for information. Here is what I've learned so far, either from a search of state web sites (indicated with live links), or from direct email contact with state representatives:

Alaska (from Elizabeth Funk, Alaska Department of Health and Social Services)

Three cases of Salmonella Enteritidis (PFGE #JEGX01.0004) so far this year; at least one case has a link to eggs, and the others are still under investigation. None of the three were hospitalized. CDC is doing additional genetic testing of the three isolates. Alaska has not found any eggs from either Wright County Egg or Hillandale Farms distributed in the state.

Arizona (from Arizona Department of Health Services News Release)

Eggs from Wright County Egg have been shipped to Arizona, and the number of Salmonella Enteritidis cases in the state is significantly higher than in 2009; however, ADHS has not been able to connect any of the Salmonella Enteritidis cases to the egg recall.

California (From Ronald Owens, California Department of Public Health)

Investigation of illness clusters in San Diego, Santa Clara and Los Angeles Counties led CDPH to the theory that Wright County Eggs were involved in the outbreak. The first breakthrough came in Santa Clara, when eggs in a custard pastry were linked to eggs recalled by Wright County Egg. California has recorded more than 200 Salmonella Enteritidis illnesses; however, not all of them are necessarily linked to contaminated eggs.

Separately, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health reports that as many as 60 people in LA County have been infected with the strain of Salmonella Enteritidis that is associated with the recalled eggs.

Colorado (from Shaun Cosgrove, Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment)

Twenty-eight cases of Salmonella Enteritidis reported in June and July, versus an average of seven cases during this two-month period in past years. Some of the cases are "likely linked to the egg recall, including cases from a recent outbreak involving The Fort restaurant in Jefferson County.

District of Columbia (from the DC web site)

There is no evidence of recall-related illnesses in DC.

Hawaii (from Janice Okubo, Hawaii Department of Health)

No cases reported.

Idaho (from Thomas Shanahan, Idaho Department of Health and Welfare)

Nothing "out of the ordinary" in Idaho, and no indications of recalled product having been distributed in the state.

Illinois (from Illinois Department of Public Health web site)

There are no confirmed cases of Salmonella Enteritidis in the state that have been linked to recalled eggs.

Indiana (from Jennifer Dunlap, Indiana State Department of Health)

There has been no unusual incidence of Salmonella Enteritidis reports and no PFGE matches associated with the recalled shell eggs.

Iowa (from press release)

No illnesses in Iowa have been linked directly to the egg recall. Nevertheless, there have been 86 cases of Salmonella Enteritidis in Iowa so far this year, as compared to 84 cases in all of 2009.

Maine (from Amy Robbins, Maine Center for Disease Control)

Maine has not seen an increase in Salmonella Enteritidis cases.

Maryland (from Karen Black, Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene)

Maryland experiences on average 800-900 confirmed cases of Salmonella annually, approximately 1/3 of them Salmonella Enteritidis. None of the Salmonella Enteritidis cases in Maryland. Companies packing eggs for Maryland – either directly or via third-party egg shipments (such as supermarket brands) must register with the Maryland Department of Agriculture. No evidence of such direct or indirect shipments of recalled eggs have been found.

Massachusetts (from Massachusetts Department of Public Health web site)

The egg recalls have not impacted any eggs distributed in Massachusetts.

Michigan (from Michigan Department of Agriculture web site)

Michigan Department of Agriculture reports that eggs associated with the nationwide egg recall were distributed in Michigan.

Minnesota (from Joshua Rounds, Minnesota Department of Health)

Minnesota has seen an unusual number of Salmonella Enteritidis (outbreak strain) cases in 2010 – approximately 70 cases so far this year, as compared to 55 in all of 2009 and 75 in 2008. Fourteen cases have been linked to the consumption of shell eggs: seven each to Wright County Egg and Hillandale Farms. Two people have been hospitalized. Of the 14 egg-related patients, five are male and 9 female; victims range in age from 5 years to more than 50 years old, with 10 of them in the 20-49 year age range. Minnesota was one of the first three states to participate in the investigation of illness clusters that led to the identification of eggs from Wright County Egg as a probable source of infections.

Mississippi (from Mississippi Department of Health web site)

A limited number of recalled eggs may have been shipped to Mississippi; however, there are no reported cases of illness in Mississippi that are linked to the recalled eggs.

Missouri (from Eden Dietle, Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services)

Missouri has not had any reported cases linked to the recalled eggs.

Nebraska (from Marla Augustine, Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services)

Eight cases of Salmonella Enteritidis appear to be connected to recalled eggs. Victims range in age from 21 to 93 years old; two are male, six are female. Five of the 8 confirmed outbreak patients were hospitalized; all have been discharged.

Nevada (from Southern Nevada Health District web site)

The Southern Nevada Health District has recorded 30 cases of Salmonella Enteritidis so far in 2010 – four times the number usually reported.

New Mexico (from Deborah Busemeyer, New Mexico Department of Health)

No unusual number of cases in the state, and none that are linked to eggs.

New York State (from New York Department of Health web site)

None of the recalled eggs have been found in New York State, nor have there been any recall-related cases of Salmonella Enteritidis reported to the Department of Health. Eggs produced in New York are not part of the national recall.

North Carolina (from Durham County, NC News Release)

Sixty-five patrons of Bullock's Bar-B-Que Restaurant in Durham were infected with the outbreak strain of Salmonella Enteritidis in April. The illnesses were linked to the consumption of a meringue that was present on certain desserts. The outbreak investigation report stated that CDC had identified similar outbreaks in other parts of the country, involving commercially distributed pasteurized egg whites sold by the same restaurant supplier and manufactured in the same plant as the product delivered to Bullocks. Testing conducted by the North Carolina Department of Agriculture could not definitively prove that this ingredient was contaminated with Salmonella.

North Dakota (from Sarah Weninger, North Dakota Department of Health)

North Dakota has not experienced an unusual number of Salmonella Enteritidis cases. The state has not recorded any cases that are linked to the recalled shell eggs.

South Dakota (from Lon Kightlinger, South Dakota Department of Health)

There have been 13 Salmonella Enteritids cases matching the PFGE pattern identified in the egg outbreak (median annual rate of 24 cases over the past five years). None of the 13 cases recall having eaten raw or undercooked eggs.

Texas (from Christine Mann, Texas Department of State Health Services)

There have been 165 cases of Salmonella Enteritidis illnesses in 41 Texas counties since mid-May (versus an average of approximately 28 cases during the same period over the last five years). A definitive link between the illnesses and the egg recalls has not yet been established.

Utah (from Julia Hall, Utah Department of Health)

Utah was originally put on the FDA recall list because Capital Trading Company (West Jordan) was once a customer of Wright County Egg. After further conversations with FDA and the owner of Capital Trading, Utah DOH believes that Capital Trading received no recalled eggs. Utah hopes that FDA will eventually remove the state from the recall list.

Vermont (from Erica Berl, Vermont Department of Health and from Vermont Agency of Agriculture)

No human cases of Salmonella Enteritidis linked to recalled eggs have been reported to the Vermont Department of Health, and there has been no increase in the reported incidence of the Salmonella Enteritidis strain. None of the recalled eggs have been found in Vermont to date.

Virginia (from Michelle Peregoy, Virginia Department of Health)

Virginia is seeing about double the number of this strain of Salmonella Enteritidis in 2010 compared to 2009; however, there were more cases in 2008 than there have been this year. Currently no cases have been linked to the consumption of shell eggs involved in the recall. The state is continuing to monitor reports for evidence of any clusters involving restaurants or events.

Washington State (from Gordon MacCracken, Washington Department of Health)

No cases reported.

West Virginia (from Toby Wagoner, Bureau for Public Health and the WV Department of Agriculture web page)

No cases of Salmonella Enteritidis linked to the outbreak investigation and no increase in incidence compared to previous years. Recalled eggs have been found at 18 locations in the state.

Wisconsin (reported in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinal on August 18th)

Twenty-one patrons of the Baker Street Restaurant and Pub in Kenosha experienced infections with Salmonella Enteritidis that were linked to the recalled eggs. Additional isolated cases are still under investigation.

Wyoming (from Kelly Weidenbach, Wyoming Department of Health)

There have not been an unusual number of Salmonella Enteritidis cases in the state this year. No cases in Wyoming have been linked to the consumption of shell eggs. No suspect outbreak cases are currently under investigation.

This outbreak is a reminder to all that eggs must be handled with the same respect given to other raw foods. The California Department of Public Health offers the following warning:

Salmonella is a bacterium that may cause serious health problems, including fever, abdominal cramps and diarrhea. Most infected people recover within a week; however, some may develop complications that require hospitalization. Infants, the elderly, and people with weakened immune systems are at the highest risk for more severe illness. Consumers are advised to use all eggs carefully, and cook them thoroughly until whites and yolks harden. Broken or cracked eggs should be discarded.

This state-by-state status report will be updated as more information becomes available.

If you would like to receive automatic email alerts for all new articles posted on eFoodAlert, please click here or submit your request using the sidebar link. Please include "subscribe eFoodAlert" in the subject line.