Please review the
following message from Alan Talarsky, Environmental Scientist 4, Public Health
and Food Protection Program, NJDOH regarding the following Class 1 Recall
issued by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration:
ProSource Produce LLC of
Hailey, Idaho, is voluntarily recalling whole raw onions (red, yellow, and
white) shipped from Chihuahua, Mexico, between July 1, 2021, and August 31,
2021, because they may have the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella,
an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young
children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems.
Healthy persons infected with Salmonella often experience
fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. In
rare circumstances, infection with Salmonella can result in
the organism getting into the bloodstream and producing more severe illnesses
such as arterial infections (i.e., infected aneurysms), endocarditis and
arthritis.
The products are whole raw onions (red, yellow,
and white) that were shipped to the United States from Chihuahua, Mexico,
between July 1, 2021, and August 31, 2021, and were distributed in AL, AR, AZ,
CA, CO, CT, FL, GA, IA, ID, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, NE,
NJ, NM, NY, OH, OK, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, VA, and WI, as well as Ontario and
Quebec, Canada. No fresh onions that originated in Chihuahua, MX have been
shipped by the company since the end of August 2021.
While investigations into various potential
sources of Salmonella remain ongoing, to date no onions
marketed through ProSource have tested positive for Salmonella.
This voluntary recall is being conducted out of an abundance of caution, in
cooperation with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), based on reported
illnesses which have been associated with the possible consumption of fresh
onions that originated in Chihuahua, MX, and shipped to the U.S. during July
and August 2021.
The onions were distributed to wholesalers,
broadline foodservice customers, and retail stores in 50 lb., 25 lb., 10 lb., 5
lb., 3 lb., and 2 lb. mesh sacks; and 50 lb., 40 lb., 25 lb., 10 lb., and 5 lb.
cartons, by the following distributors and/or under the following brands:
Big Bull, Peak Fresh Produce, Sierra Madre,
Markon First Crop., Markon Essentials, Rio Blue, ProSource, Rio Valley, and
Sysco Imperial. Representative examples of product labels are below.
Consumers who have purchased onions that
originated in Chihuahua, MX are urged to return them to the place of purchase
for a full refund or throw them out. Consumers with questions may contact the
company at (208) 928-4959, Monday-Friday, 8am-5pm MDT.
The link to the outbreak investigation is as follows: Outbreak Investigation of Salmonella Oranienburg: Whole, Fresh Onions (October 2021) | FDA
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No
action is required of local health departments at this time for this recall. If
any requests for assistance are received from FDA, the Public Health and Food
Protection Program will contact you. For additional information regarding
warnings and recalls, please click on the weblink below.
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For all recalls -
http://www.recalls.gov/recent.html
This information has been broadcast to: Food Safety Organizations; NJLINCS and Local Contacts; NJLINCS Community; Local Boards of Health; NJDOH Staff; Public Health Associations; Public Health Council; Public Health Sector