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Costco’s chicken salad has led to four cases of Salmonella infections.
One year ago Costco’s chicken salad led to a E. coli infestation across seven states. Now a new Salmonella contamination has been linked to the same product. The source of the infection is limited to only one store in the State of Washington.
An USDA Food and Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) analysis has revealed that a Costco Store has a Salmonella infection in its chicken salad. Fortunately, according to a public warning, the infection is localized to the Costco store in Lynnwood, Washington.
Nonetheless, the infection was revealed only a month later after the batch of chicken salad in question was sold. As such, people have already consumed it and there have been reports of illnesses.
According to the FSIS notice:
Based on epidemiological evience, four Salmonella case patients have been identified with illness onset dates ranging from September 2 to September 6. Traceback investigation indicated that three of these case patients consumed rotisserie chicken salad purchased on Aug. 26, Aug. 31 and Sept. 2 from the Lynnwood store.
The FSIS issued a public health alert. They are concerned that some infected product may still be found in consumer’s freezers. They recommend that the chicken salad be either discarded or returned to the store. If you already ate the chicken salad and developed some of the following symptoms: fever, abdominal cramps, diarrhea; within 12 to 72 hours, then seek immediate medical attention. People should specifically alert their doctors about the exposure to Salmonella.
Fortunately, those symptoms only last four to seven days for healthy individuals. As such, most cases tend to recover without treatment. More severe cases require hospitalization. The most vulnerable to Salmonella are people with weakened immune systems such as the elderly and children. They have a higher risk of developing a more severe illness than the standard symptoms.
The E. coli infection that also plagued Costco’s chicken salad in 2017 led to up to 19 people falling ill. Fortunately, no deaths were reported, though some people required hospitalizations. Costco voluntarily removed all the chicken salad from all of its stores in the US. Other products used in the salad such as onions and celery were also purged.
Fortunately, the current Salmonella contamination isn’t as large scale as the outbreak of E. coli in 2017. Though, Costco will be required to remove all of its chicken salad once again.
Were you ever infected with Salmonella?
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