Food Poisoning Law Blog : Food Poisoning Lawyer & Attorney : PritzkerLaw : Food Safety, Outbreaks & Recalls

Egg safety initiatives are under way in the public and private sectors in the wake of a nationwide egg Salmonella outbreak  that has sickened more than 1,800 people and has been linked to a pair of farms in Iowa.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which is primarily responsible for egg safety but has a limited number of inspectors, plans to train USDA egg graders how to catch potential bacterial problems at egg farms and to conduct inspections.

FDA previously announced plans to inspect every major farm in the nation, starting with operations that have had past trouble with government officials. Sixteen inspections had been carried out by midmonth. The agency expects to conduct about 600 inspections in the next 14 months.

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Past and present workers at Wright County Egg in Iowa, home of the chickens who laid the Salmonella eggs, dished out some dirt on the company to the Des Moines Register. Here are some quotes from the article about the conditions in the Wright County Egg hen houses:

Dozens of chickens died daily, their bodies lying undiscovered in cages for days, and perhaps weeks, at a time.

“I saw maggots and sometimes mice on the conveyor belt.”

Hundreds of mice killed by poison can fill about 50 cage traps in each hen house several times a week.

A wry smile broke across her face as she recalled the multitude of mice that dodged her feet when she walked between rows of chicken cages.

Every worker interviewed said the piles of manure under the hen houses are cleaned out once a year.

The ammonia caused bloodshot and swollen eyes, and made nasal passages throb.

A Mexican woman who declined to be identifiedsaid she quit in January and worked there four years. She said the ammonia grew worse in the winter because the vents were closed to keep the hen houses warm.

She called the conditions inside the hen houses "incredible."

"I don't understand how the government allowed them to operate like this," she said through an interpreter.

The manure problem was highlighted in an FDA inspection report of Wright County Egg facilities issued in August after Wright County Egg recalled over 300 million eggs and over 1000 people reported getting Salmonella poisoning.  According to the report, manure was piled 8 feet high, and two hen house entrance doors were blocked with excessive amounts of manure.

Justice requires that Wright County Egg and its owner, Jack DeCoster, be held accountable for the illnesses caused by the contaminated eggs. Our law firm has filed a lawsuit against Wright County Egg seeking payment of medical expenses and compensation for pain and suffering and other damages. Contact our law firm for egg lawsuit information.

Image from the Humane Society Factory Farming website.

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I just got back from a convenience store to buy eggs.  When I asked the cashier about the egg recall, there was a blank stare.  Another woman looked at me and said, "I am going to watch football.  The eggs come from somewhere."  I appreciated the concern and knew neither of them had ever had Salmonella or probably any illness with severe barfing and diarrhea. 

I got home and checked my eggs with the egg recall list.  My eggs are not on the list but I can't assume they are Salmonella-free. 

Here is the updated egg recall list:

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DeLauro chairs the House Appropriations agriculture subcommittee.

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In the nationwide egg recall, the Food and Drug Administration has released an easy-to-read listing of recalled egg packages complete with brand name, plant number and Julian date.

On recalled egg cartons, the numbers are stamped on the outside end. The plant number is preceded by a letter "P" on the package. The Julian date follows.

As compiled by the Egg Safety Center, Here are the egg brands, plant numbers and Julian dates for the Wright County Egg Salmonella and Hillandale Farms egg recalls.

Note: This list will be updated with publicly available information as received. The information is current as of the date indicated. If we learn that any information is not accurate, we will revise the list as soon as possible.

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Hundreds of people have contracted Salmonella enteritidis infections in a national outbreak linked to eggs.  Prompted by this outbreak, on August 13 and August 18, Wright County Egg of Galt Iowa recalled over 300 million eggs because the companies eggs had been implicated as a possible source of the outbreak.  Now, Hillandale Farms of Iowa has recalled over 100 million shell eggs because "there have been laboratory-confirmed Salmonella enteritidis illnesses associated with the shell eggs."

The recalled Hillandale eggs were distributed to grocery distribution centers, retail grocery stores and foodservice companies.  People have contracted Salmonella enteritidis infections after eating at restaurants, events and at home. 

At least 26 restaurant-associated Salmonella enteritidis outbreaks may have been caused by eggs, according to the CDC. 

The recalled Hillandale eggs were distributed under the following brand names:

• Hillandale Farms
• Sunny Farms
• Sunny Meadow

They were distributed in 6-egg cartons, dozen-egg cartons, 18-egg cartons, 30-egg package, and 5-dozen cases.

Loose eggs were packaged under the following brand names: Wholesome Farms and West Creek in 15 and 30-dozen tray packs. The loose eggs may have been repackaged under a different brand..

The only eggs effected by this recall have plant numbers P1860 or P1663 and Julian dates as follows:

• P1860 – Julian dates ranging from 099 to 230
• P1663 – Julian dates ranging from 137 to 230

Only eggs with these plant numbers are effected - even though the brand name may be the same

Julian dates and plant codes can be found stamped on the end of the egg carton or printed on the case label. The plant number begins with the letter P and then the number. The Julian date follows the plant number, for example: P1860 230.

During this outbreak, new federal egg safety rules went into effect.  In addition to other safety measures, these rules require additional testing to prevent Salmonella outbreaks.  Policy makers, regulators and the consuming public have a right to know whether Hillandale Farms was adequately testing for Salmonella and following the most up-to-date safety rules. The public has a right to know why this outbreak happened.

Our law firm has received calls from people throughout the United States with questions about this recall and an egg lawsuit.  To contact an egg recall lawyer, please call 1-888-377-8900 (toll free) or submit our free consultation form.

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Nevada Salmonella Egg concerns have peaked because the state has seen a spike in Salmonella Enteritidis cases and Wright County Egg lists Nevada as a distribution point for eggs recalled because of possible contamination.

The Southern Nevada Health District has identified a very sizable increase in the number of Salmonella Enteritidis cases of a specific type in the community. The health district has not pinned down the cause, but it has reported 30 cases of this type since January 2010, which is four times more than normally reported.

The health district said it is collaborating with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service to investigate the nationwide increase in Salmonella Enteritidis. With help from CDC and FDA, health investigators from Minnesota, California and Colorado have all associated clusters and spikes of these infections to shell eggs produced by Wright County Egg of Galt, Iowa.

Nevada consumers who have fallen ill after consuming egg products should seek immediate care from a physician and request a stool culture be taken. For answers to legal questions about a Nevada Salmonella egg lawsuit, call law firm PritzkerOlsen, P.A. at 1-888-377-8900 (Toll Free) or complete the contact form on the side of this Web site.

Our firm is one of the few in the country practicing extensively in the area of foodborne illness litigation and we have collected millions for victims of food poisoning. Minnesota, where we are based, is one of the first states to tie the increase in Salmonella Enteritidis to the Iowa egg mega-producer. 

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Salmonella enteritidis, an egg-associated bacterium, can be undetectable by sight or smell. The Salmonella enteritidis can be present in ordinary-looking eggs. If contaminated eggs are eaten raw, or even undercooked, the bacterium can cause illness.
 

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