Federal health officials have updated a spate of spring and summer illness outbreaks, announcing an apparent end to salmonella infections caused by tainted mangoes and live poultry and new cases in an ongoing outbreak of listeria tied to contaminated ricotta salata cheese.
- A total of 127 people in 15 states were sickened by strains of salmonella Braenderup in mangoes produced by Agricola Daniella, a mango supplier with multiple plantations and a single packing house in Sinaloa, Mexico. People became sick between July 3 and Sept. 1. Thirty-three of those people were hospitalized, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Infection. The mango producer was placed on import alert by the Food and Drug Administration, which means the fruit will not be admitted into the U.S. unless the producer proves it is free of salmonella through independent laboratory tests.
- Meanwhile, in August, health officials detected an outbreak of salmonella Worthington that sickened 16 people in three states who had eaten mangoes. However, that strain of salmonella was not isolated from the fruit, so the count was not included in the overall cases. One patient in the salmonella Braenderup outbreak was also infected with salmonella Worthington, which suggests a link between the two outbreaks, the CDC said.
- A total of 46 people were infected with a strain of salmonella Hadar in 11 states after contact with live poultry. Thirteen people were hospitalized and 30 percent of the victims were children younger than 10. Illnesses ranged from March 6 through Aug. 12.
- Another 93 people were infected with a strain of salmonella Montevideo in 23 states and Puerto Rico after handling backyard poultry such as ducks, chicks and other baby poultry from Estes Hatchery in Springfield, Mo. Illnesses occurred between Feb. 28 and Sept. 15. Twenty-one people were hospitalized and 38 percent of victims were children younger than 10. One death of a person infected with the outbreak strain was reported in Missouri, but the infection was not considered a contributing factor in the person’s demise.
- As of Oct. 11, at least 20 people in 12 states and the District of Columbia have been infected with an outbreak strain of listeria tied to tainted ricotta salata cheese. That outbreak is ongoing. Nineteen victims have been hospitalized and four have died. One miscarriage has been reported. The cheese contributed to atleast two of the deaths, CDC officials said. The outbreak was blamed on contaminated Frescolina Marte brand ricotta salata cheese distributed by Forever Cheese Inc., which has recalled all lots and production codes of the cheese. The product may also have been referred to as Ricotta Frescolina Marte Tipo Toscanella or Ricotta Salata Soft.
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