United States: An Arizona produce company has recalled all sizes of whole fresh American cucumbers distributed in 26 states and part of Canada because it is suspected to contain salmonella, the company said.
Nationwide Recall
SunFed stated in an announcement published by the Food and Drug Administration on Thursday that it was pulling out cucumbers it sold between October 12 and November 26 due to the possible contamination, which is severe enough to be fatal in cases of young children, elderly people, or those with low immune systems, as reported by NBC News.
The affected cucumbers were in bulk cardboard boxes labeled SunFed, generic white boxes, or black plastic crates with stickers displaying the name of the grower, as stated by the firm.
Affected Areas
The produce was distributed in 26 states: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin.
They were also exported across the areas in some countries, especially in Canada- provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, and Calgary, and provinces of Ontario and Saskatchewan.
Company Response and Consumer Guidance
SunFed stated that the implicated cucumbers would have been consumed by the consumers who bought them in food service and retail stores that may be in other states but not in the four named.
“As soon as we learned of this issue, we immediately acted to protect consumers,” SunFed President Craig Slate said in a statement. “We are working closely with authorities and the implicated ranch to determine the possible cause.”
SunFed requested the consumers verify whether their cucumbers fell into the category of the recalled batch and refrain from eating or circulating the pathogen-tainted food. The companies urged consumers to dispose of any product that was recalled.
A Persistent Threat
Cucumbers were also withdrawn earlier this year in South Florida, where at least 551 people were believed to have contracted salmonella, and 155 of them had to be hospitalized.
The majority of the recalled cucumbers were associated with Bedner Growers Inc. as well as Thomas Produce Co., from Palm Beach County, Florida, as noted by the FDA. Thomas refuted the idea that its products were directly linked.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention explain that approximately 1.35 million cases of salmonella are recorded in the United States annually.
