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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National food safety law firm Pritzker Olsen Attorneys is representing victims in the pepper and spice Salmonella outbreak that first came to light in late March.

The outbreak, associated with bulk white and black pepper, other dry spices and oil-based seasonings manufactured by Union International Food Co,. is continuing in California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington and other western states. The latest official count by the California Department of Public Health is that more than 60 people in the region have been sickened with Salmonella Rissen.

Pritzker Olsen has created a time line of the outbreak, listed below. The law firm is involved in practically every major outbreak of Salmonella, E. coli O157:H7, Listeria, Botulism, Campylobacter, Shigella and other foodborne illness.

With years of experience representing victims, the firm's food poisoning lawyers have won millions of dollars for victims and their families. In the current pepper Salmonella outbreak, Pritzker Olsen is preparing a lawsuit against Union International on behalf of Shirley Jane Schultz, 77, of Dayton, Nevada.

Mrs. Schultz continues to suffer from the effects of her food poisoning ordeal. During a lengthy hospital stay, family members feared she would not survive when her kidneys temporarily shut down.

If you or someone you know has suffered a Salmonella infection believed to be linked to pepper, spice or oils from Union International Food Co., call Pritzker Olsen at 1-888-377-8900 or write to us online for a free case consultation.

PEPPER SALMONELLA OUTBREAK TIME LINE

March 28 -- California Department of Public Health announces that consumers should avoid eating spices manufactured by Union International of Union City, California. By then, white and black pepper from the firm had been associated with 42 Salmonella Rissen illnesses in four states. A high proportion of victims had eaten at Asian restaurants where the company's pepper was served.

March 30 -- Family-owned Union International issues original recall of white pepper, black pepper and a few other dry spices, including paprika and curry powder. Salmonella matching the outbreak strain had been found in an open container of white pepper at a restaurant where more than one victim had eaten.

April 2 -- Food and Drug Administration alerts public to Uncle Chen and Lian How brand pepper and dry spice recall. The FDA said the products were sold mostly to ethnic restaurants, wholesalers and grocery retailers in the western region.

April 3 -- Union International expanded its recall to include additional dry spices, including nutmeg, cumin powder and crushed chili powder.

April 4 -- EDS Wrap and Roll Foods of Hayward, California, announces a recall of six tons of frozen chicken egg rolls because they contained black pepper spice from Union International that may be contaminated with Salmonella. The recall notice is published simultaneously by the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service.

April 9 -- Shirley Schultz diagnosed with an infection of Salmonella Rissen in Nevada.

April 15 -- California Department of Public Health warns consumers to avoid sauces and oils made by Union International. By now, 57 people in four states have been diagnosed with the outbreak strain of Salmonella, including 42 in California.

April 21 -- Oakland, California,-based CJ United Corp. announces a recall of pepper and curry sold under the "Natural and Delicious'' label. The spice had been obtained from Union International.

April 30 -- Pasta & Co. of Seattle, Washington, issues a recall of its Chinese Vermicelli Salad and Pot Sticker Salad. The company said the recall was driven by fears of Salmonella contamination from chili oil ingredients purchased from Union International.

May 15 -- New York Times publishes investigative report by staff writer Michael Moss on a trend in the food industry for companies to shift the onus of food safety onto consumers. The story describes the Union International pepper and spice Salmonella recall as "widening.'' 

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The California food wholesaler whose spices have been linked to a multi-state Salmonella outbreak in the West has expanded its consumer product recall to include all Uncle Chen and Lian How sauces, oils and oil blends.

Union International Food Co. of Union City also said its recall now covers all types of dry spice products in 15-pound and smaller containers and 30-pound boxes and smaller packages of crushed chili.

All the products may be contaminated with Salmonella, the company said.

The recalls started in March, when the company's Uncle Chen and Lian How brand pepper was suspected of causing the outbreak, which initially was described as sickening more than 20 people in California, Nevada and Oregon.

Officials are still investigating the multi-state Salmonella outbreak. Salmonella was ultimately isolated from an open container of Lian How White Pepper, which was found at a restaurant where some outbreak victims ate. Union International said the chili sauce, sesame oil and chili oil products have not been linked to the outbreak but the company said it was "acting with an abundance of caution.''

The list of oils and sauces in the latest recall include 100 Percent Pure Sesame Oil, Chinese Sesame Oil, Chinese Style Sesame, Jaisun Sesame Oil, Jaisun Blended Soybean and Sesame Oil, 100 Percent Black Sesame Oil, Chili Oil, Chili Sauce, Hot Bean Sauce, Hunan Red Chili Sauce, Sweet Flour Sauce, Fresh Ground Chili Paste, Garlic Chili Extra Hot Sauce and Superior Red Chili Oil.

National food safety law firm PritzkerOlsen, P.A., currently is representing Salmonella victims, including the families of three women who died from Salmonella infections in the national outbreak caused by Peanut Corp. of America. The infectious bacteria can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, the elderly and other people who have weakened immune systems.

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

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