US firm recalls chicken and ham products due to E.coli fears

The contamination was discovered after the US Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) traced a cluster of E.coli O157:H7 illnesses back to the establishment through a series of case studies.

The FSIS made the announcement of a Class 1 Recall (high health risk) on 10 November after 15 case-patients confirmed they had consumed ready-to-eat pre-packaged salads before falling ill.  The Agency, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CFC) and several other government departments linked the illnesses to the salads.

The products were shipped to distribution centres which were intended for sale in Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas, Utah and Washington.

Although most patients recover from the illness within a week, it can potentially be fatal and, in some cases, the patient can develop a type of kidney failure called hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS).

The FSIS advises consumers in possession of the products, produced between 23 September and 6 November, to destroy them and urges anyone experiencing symptoms to seek emergency medical care immediately.