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

A state and federal investigation of the California company linked to 2009's pepper Salmonella outbreak that sickened 87 people in five states found unacceptably dirty conditions and a veritable hot zone of Salmonella Rissen.

According to a U.S. Food and Drug Administration report obtained by national food safety law firm Pritzker Olsen, Union City-based Union International Food Co. was filthy with bacteria matching the outbreak strain of Salmonella.

The outbreak started in September 2008 and grew to include 42 illnesses before health investigators associated it with Uncle Chen and Liam How pepper from Union International in late March 2008. The pepper products were recalled from restaurants and retail stores March 28. The five states affected were California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington and Idaho.

A lengthy 2009 inspection performed by 13 investigators found that the company had never tested its products or plant facility for pathogens, had no formal sanitation program and cleaned its primary machinery only when it was too dirty to function.

According to the comprehensive FDA report, the plant's white pepper grinding room was the epicenter of the outbreak, which sent at least eight people to the hospital. One of those victims is a Nevada woman represented by Pritzker Olsen who spent two weeks at Carson Tahoe Medical Center with acute renal failure.

The report said that of 40 swab samples collected from food and non-food contact surfaces in the grinding room at Union International,  34 samples (85%) were positive for Salmonella. DNA fingerprint analysis was conducted for 19 of the 34 swab samples and all 19 matched the outbreak strain of Salmonella Rissen, the report said.

The company had no system to control the spread of dust, which offered no protection against cross-contamination of other operations, the report said. Swabs taken in areas of the plant where a variety of other spices were packed and where Asian style cooking oils and sauces were made, also found Salmonella Rissen.

Union International obtained its whole white peppercorns from Vietnam and the inventory at the plant tested positive for the outbreak strain of Salmonella. Investigators noted in the report that the same strain of Salmonella Rissen had been found in 2006 in an inspection sample of unrelated black pepper imported from Vietnam.

In the midst of last year's inspection of the company, authorities ensured a shutdown of operations by filing a stipulated preliminary injunction against Union International in Alameda County Superior Court. After many objectionable conditions were documented, the company performed a deep cleaning and overhauled its operations.

After the cleaning and remodeling, all 100 swab samples taken by inspectors came back clean, the report said.

Pritzker Olsen conducted its own investigation of the Union International pepper Salmonella outbreak and continues to accept cases from individuals sickened by it. The firm also is hearing from victims of the current pepper salami Salmonella outbreak involving contaminated salami made by Daniele Inc. of Pascoag, Rhode Island.

To contact a Salmonella expert at Pritzker Olsen, call 1-888-377-8900 (Toll Free) or complete our contact form on the side of this Web page. Our firm is one of the few in the country practicing extensively in the area of foodborne illness litigation. We have collected millions for victims of food poisoning and actively support initiatives to prevent the spread of human pathogens in our food supply.

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At least 42 people, including 33 in California, have been sickened by the same strain of Salmonella -- an outbreak that health investigators have linked to white and black pepper spices sold by Union International Food Co. of California.

The company has recalled its pepper spices and other seasonings, including cayenne pepper, paprika, chopped onion, onion powder, garlic, curry powder, mustard powder, and wasabi powder. The spices have been distributed to retail stores and restaurants under the Lian How and Uncle Chen brand names. Much of the product was sold to Chinese and Vietnamese establishments.

Dr. William Keene, senior epidemiologist in the Public Health Division of the Oregon Department of Human Services, said in a news release that the outbreak strain is Salmonella enterica serotype Rissen. He said there are four known cases in Oregon, all in the Portland metro area, and that the same strain is linked to Salmonella illnesses in Washington and Nevada.

The spices were sold mostly in California and Oregon. Packages, which ranged in size from five-ounce plastic jars to 2.2-pound foil bags to 15-pound cardboard boxes with plastic liners, were labled "Packed by Union International Foods" or "Union National Foods.''.

Mark Horton, director of California Department of Public Health, said in a press release March 28 that consumers should avoid eating spices from Union International Food Co. In eight of the 42 cases confirmed since December, eight people were hospitalized.

For young children, the elderly and others with weakened immune systems, Salmonella infection can be fatal, but no fatalities have been associated so far with the spice outbreak. Symptoms of Salmonella  include diarreha, cramps and fever with an onset of illness between 12 and 72 hours after exposure to the organism.

PritzkerOlsen P.A., has considerable experience and a reputation for success in representing survivors of foodborne illnesses, including Salmonella, E. coli, Listeria and Shigella. The firm is involved in virtually every national outbreak and has collected large sums on behalf of people injured or killed by adulterated food. In addition, the firm is devoted  to educating the public about food safety issues and advocating for badly needed food safety legislative changes.

To contact a Salmonella attorney at PritzkerOlsen, please call 1-888-377-8900 (toll free) or complete a free online case consultation form .

 Keene said Oregon health investigators were the first to confirm Salmonella in Lian How pepper after they began testing products of interest in their investigation. He said health officials in California and Nevada quickly thereafter discovered that the same pepper was in use at restaurants in those states where Salmonella cases had been confirmed.

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