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

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is in the process of verifying that the Daniele salami Salmonella outbreak involving contaminated red and black pepper is under control.

Since the agency last reported on the outbreak, very few cases have been added to the total, which now stands at 252 Salmonella Montevideo illnesses in 44 states. There's another nine cases of Salmonella infections of serotype Senftenberg related to the outbreak, the CDC has said.

Of 193 patients for which medical treatment information was available, 51 victims have been hospitalized and no one has died.

National food safety law firm Pritzker Olsen is representing victims of this outbreak and is continuing to accept cases. To receive a free case consultation, call a Salmonella lawyer at 1-888-377-8900 (Toll Free) or complete the contact form on the side of this Web page. 

Pritzker Olsen is one of the few law firms in the country practicing extensively in the area of foodborne illness litigation and we have collected millions for food poisoning victims. Our firm also is actively involved in efforts to prevent foodborne illness, including supporting tougher legislation in Congress to strengthen the U.S. system of food inspection and regulation.

The CDC said in its latest press release on the Daniele International outbreak that it is still working with the USDA , FDA and state partners to identify the specific products or ingredients that became contaminated and how the contamination occurred. The agencies also are still trying to identify any other food vehicles that may be involved.

The number of ill persons identified in each state with the outbreak strain of Salmonella Montevideo is as follows: AK (1), AL (2), AZ (7), CA (31), CO (5), CT (5), DC (1), DE (3), FL (3), GA (3), IA (1), ID (4), IL (23), IN (4), KS (5), LA (1), MA (14), MD (1), ME (1), MI (4), MN (6), MO (2), MS (1), NC (11), ND (1), NE (3), NH (2), NJ (9), NM (2), NY (19), OH (9), OK (1), OR (10), PA (7), RI (2), SC (1), SD (3), TN (5), TX (7), UT (9), VA (1), WA (18), WI (1), WV (1), and WY (2).

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Between January 23 and February 16, Daniele International Inc. of Pascoag, Rhode Island, recalled a total of 1.4 million pounds of salami products because they were believed to be contaminated with Salmonella Montevideo and/or Salmonella Senftenberg.

The company's Italian style sausage meat has been strongly associated with an outbreak of Salmonella Montevideo that has sickened at least 249 people in 44 states since last July. Another eight cases of Salmonella Senftenberg have been confirmed by investigators.

That's six more illnesses combined than were reported last week and the most recent onset of illness is marked as February 18. Other cases in the process of being confirmed have not yet been added to the overall count.

The Rhode Island Department of Public Health has found the outbreak strain of Salmonella Montevideo in samples of black and red pepper from Daniele's production plant. Since then, in domino fashion, two of Daniele's pepper suppliers have announced recalls and a couple of their customers have done the same.

See The Food Safety Lawyer for a comprehensive list of the recalls.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 26 percent of outbreak victims have been hospitalized. There have been no deaths.

If you or a loved one is a victim of this outbreak and have seen a physician, you may have legal questions about compensation for medical expenses, lost wages and other costs. For answers and a free case consultation, call national food safety law firm Pritzker Olsen. We already represent a number of victims from this outbreak and we are continuing to accept cases at 1-888-377-8900 (Toll Free).

Salmonella infection can be overcome by healthy adults without treatment, but people should not take this form of food poisoning lightly. In the last national Salmonella outbreak, which was related to contaminated peanuts, nine people died and many more suffered long-term health consequences.

For victims of these preventable outbreaks, one of the long-term risks is a painful condition known as Reiter's Syndrome, or reactive arthritis (ReA).  Other possible long-term consequences include infected bone marrow or inflamation of the aorta or the heart muscle.

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) continues to investigate the possibility that pepper in Daniele salami might be responsible for a Salmonella Montevideo outbreak that has sickened 238 individuals in 44 states and the District of Columbia.

National food safety law firm Pritzker Olsen has been retained to represent victims of this salami Salmonella outbreak associated with Daniele International Inc. of Pascoag, Rhode Island.

The firm represents Salmonella infection victims throughout the United States, and has recently filed a lawsuit in Nevada (Shirley Shultz v. Union International Food Co., 3:09-cv-00259, United States Court, District of Nevada.) The Nevada lawsuit involves a 2009 outbreak of Salmonella Rissen linked to contaminated pepper produced by California-based Union International Food Company.

In response to this outbreak, Daniele has recalled more than 1.7 million pounds of salami products starting January 23. The outbreak itself dates to July 2009, hospitalizing an estimated 63 people. Leading states for the outbreak include California (30 cases), New York (18), Washington (17), Illinois (17) Massachusetts (13) and North Carolina (11).

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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is investigating the supply chain of black pepper used in the making of 1.6 million pounds of coated salami and other ready-to-eat meats recalled by Daniele Inc. of Pascoag, Rhode Island.

The recalled salame products have been linked to a 42-state outbreak of Salmonella Montevideo that has sickened at least 213 people and sent an estimated 55 people to the hospital. No deaths have been reported.

A significant amount of people infected with the outbreak strain of Salmonella didn't eat salami the week before getting ill, which has given investigators reason to look for other pepper-containing food products as additional sources of the outbreak.

Rhode Island's own health department confirmed through DNA  testing that unopened containers of pepper at Daniele were contaminated with the outbreak strain of Salmonella. The company had suspected it. The pepper was traced to two suppliers who sourced pepper from the same manufacturer.

The first illnesses in this outbreak occurred in early July 2009, but it wasn't until January that Oregon and Washington health officials locked onto salami as a potential cause. As so often is the case in food poisoning investigations, interviews conducted with ill persons made the difference. Once a correlation was found, DNA fingerprinting confirmed it was correct.

The successful case-control study in this outbreak compared foods eaten by 41 ill and 41 well persons. Preliminary analysis of this study suggested salami as a possible source of illness. Ill persons (58%) were significantly more likely than well persons (16%) to report eating salami. Additionally, 16 ill persons have been identified who purchased the same type of sliced salami variety pack at different grocery store locations before becoming ill.

National food safety law firm Pritzker Olsen is monitoring the outbreak investigation and is continuing to accept cases from this outbreak. As a leading practitioner of foodborne illness litigation, we are involved in practically every major outbreak and we have collected tens of millions for victims.

We have experience representing victims made seriously ill by Salmonella, including a woman who spent two weeks in an Arizona hospital last year after consuming contaminated pepper at a Reno resort where a cluster of other people also got sick. 

For a free case consultation call 1-888-377-8900 (toll free) or complete the contact form on the side of this Web page. 

Most persons infected with Salmonella develop diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps 12–72 hours after infection. Infection is usually diagnosed by culture of a stool sample, so it is important to see a doctor. The illness usually lasts from 4 to 7 days.

Although most people recover without treatment, severe infections may occur. Infants, elderly persons, and those with weakened immune systems are more likely than others to develop severe illness. When severe infection occurs, Salmonella may spread from the intestines to the bloodstream and then to other body sites and can cause death unless the person is treated promptly with antibiotics.

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Rhode Island Department of Health has confirmed  that the same strain of Salmonella Montevideo that has infected almost 200 people in 40 states has been found in an open container of pepper at salami maker Daniele Inc.

The Pascoag, Rhode Island, company previously announced a Salmonella finding in its pepper inventory, but didn't say whether the isolate was a DNA match to the strain making people sick across the country since last July.

The state didn't identify the brand of pepper or name the supplier, but did say that this particular brand was only distributed to Daniele Inc. in Rhode Island. The announcement does not ensure that Daniele pepper salami is the only product that caused the outbreak. But so far no products have been added to the Salmonella outbreak recall list.

Because the pepper sample that tested positive by Rhode Island Health came from an open container, it is considered the probable source of the outbreak and more tests are being conducted, the state said.

Previous lab tests by state health officials in Iowa and Washington found the outbreak strain of Samonella in open packs of recalled Daniele sliced variety packs containing pepper salami. 

A key finding in the investigation came from Washingon, where state investigators reviewing shopping receipts verified that 13 cases purchased the same salami variety pack before getting sick. The Iowa salami Salmonella confirmation came from a sample found in salami from a pack that one of the cases had eaten. 

National food safety law firm Pritzker Olsen is accepting cases from this outbreak. We are currently representing Salmonella victims nationwide, including some who have suffered long-term consequences, such as arterial infections. Call 1-888-377-8900 (Toll Free) or complete the contact form on the side of this Web page for a free case consultation about your rights to compensation for a Salmonella outbreak that could and should have been prevented.

 

Salmonellosis is a common foodborne infection that comes from more than 2,000 strains of Salmonella and most people recover from salmonellosis on their own. But it is not to be taken lightly and can be deadly in cases involving young children, older adults and people who have weakened immune systems.

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The Rhode Island company linked to a national salami Salmonella outbreak is reporting that samples of black pepper in its inventory have tested positive for Salmonella.

The discovery will trigger additional study by state and federal health inspectors to identify the supplier and determine if other peppered products have contributed to the outbreak. More recalls could be announced soon.

Here's what salami maker Daniele Inc. of Pascoag, Rhode Island, is telling its customers:

Samples of the black pepper used to coat the finished products have tested positive for Salmonella. This indicates that the product was contaminated after processing. We have changed suppliers of our spices, and specifications for spices. We are now using only pasteurized spices.

The outbreak strain of Salmonella Montevideo has been found in patients and salami. A second strain of Salmonella Seftenberg also has been recovered. As the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy noted, the company doesn't say which strain was found in its pepper.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 189 individuals in 40 states have been infected by the same strain of Salmonella since July 2009. Epidemiological study only recently connected the outbreak to pepper salami made by Daniele. The company has recalled 1.24 million pounds of product and the details of  the recall can be seen by clicking here.

Salmonellosis should not be taken lightly. Salmonella is a human pathogen that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people and others with weakened immune systems. In rare circumstances, it can result in the organism getting into the bloodstream and producing more severe illnesses such as arterial infections (i.e., infected aneurysms), endocarditis and arthritis.

 National food safety law firm Pritzker Olsen is accepting cases from this outbreak at 1-888-377-8900 (Toll Free) or online via contact form on this Web page. Individuals may call a Salmonella lawyer for answers to legal questions about compensation. This outbreak could have been prevented. Click here to read about a Daniele salami lawsuit

Our firm is one of the few in the nation practicing extensively in the area of foodborne illness litigation and our lawyers are considered leaders in this complicated area of law. We have the experience of successfully representing food poisoning victims in practically every major outbreak in the U.S. 

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