By Matthew Robinson
A recall of millions of eggs due to potential salmonella contamination has now been issued the highest risk warning by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).August Egg Company, based in California, issued a voluntary recall on June 6 for more than 20 million eggs following reports of numerous infections across multiple states.The FDA subsequently issued a Class I risk classification for the recall on July 2.Newsweek contacted the FDA for comment via email and August Egg Company for comment via phone outside of normal working hours.Why It MattersA Class I risk classification represents “a situation in which there is a reasonable probability that the use of or exposure to a violative product will cause serious adverse health consequences or death,” according to the FDA.Salmonella bacteria can cause gastrointestinal illness and fever called salmonellosis in infected individuals. Symptoms typically develop between 12 to 72 hours after infection, and usually last between four and seven days.Typical symptoms include diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps. Individuals experiencing more severe infections may experience high fever, aches, headaches, lethargy, rashes, and blood in urine.The FDA added that infections can become fatal on rare occasions, with around 450 people dying each year from salmonellosis.What To KnowThe recall impacted 20,400,000, or 1.7 million dozen, brown cage free and brown certified organic eggs, according to the FDA.The eggs were distributed between February 3 and May 15 within California and Nevada to the following retailers: Save Mart, Food Maxx, Lucky, Smart & Final, Safeway, Raleys, Food 4 Less, and Ralphs. They had sell-by dates from March 4 to June 4.Other eggs were distributed between February 3 and May 6 to Walmart locations in California, Washington, Nevada, Arizona, Wyoming, New Mexico, Nebraska, Indiana and Illinois.The eggs were packaged in fiber or plastic cartons with the plant code numbers P-6562 or CA5330, with the Julian Dates between 32 to 126.The products impacted by the recall include:
Clover Organic Large Brown 12 eggs – carton UPC: 070852010427
First Street Cage Free Large Brown Loose 1 case 150 eggs – carton UPC: 041512039638
Nulaid Medium Brown Cage Free 12 eggs – carton UPC: 071230021042
Nulaid Jumbo Brown Cage Free 12 eggs – carton UPC: 071230021011
O Organics Cage Free Large Brown 6 eggs – carton UPC: 079893401522
O Organics Large Brown 12 eggs – carton UPC: 079893401508
O Organics Large Brown 18 eggs – carton UPC: 079893401546
Marketside Organic Large Cage Free Brown 12 eggs – carton UPC: 681131122771
Marketside Organic Large Cage Free Brown 18 eggs – carton UPC: 681131122801
Marketside Large Cage Free Brown 12 eggs – carton UPC: 681131122764
Marketside Large Cage Free Brown 18 eggs – carton UPC: 681131122795
Raley’s Large Cage Free Brown 12 eggs – carton UPC: 046567033310
Raley’s Large Cage Free Brown 18 eggs – carton UPC: 046567040325
Raley’s Organic Large Cage Free Brown 12 eggs – carton UPC: 046567028798
Raley’s Organic Large Cage Free Brown 18 eggs – carton UPC: 046567040295
Simple Truth Medium Brown Cage Free 18 eggs – carton UPC: 011110099327
Simple Truth Large Brown Cage Free 18 eggs – carton UPC: 011110873743
Sun Harvest Organic Cage Free Large Brown 12 eggs – carton UPC: 041512131950
Sun Harvest Organic Cage Free Large Brown 18 eggs – carton UPC: 041512145162
Sunnyside Large Brown Cage Free 12 eggs – carton UPC: 717544211747
Sunnyside Large Brown Cage Free 18 eggs – carton UPC: 717544211754
Sunnyside Organic Cage Free Large Brown 12 eggs – carton UPC: 717544201441
Sunnyside Organic Cage Free Large Brown 18 eggs – carton UPC: 717544211761
Loose Small Brown Cage Free – 1 box = 6 flats (1 flat = 30 eggs) – carton UPC: NA
Loose Medium Brown Cage Free – 1 box – carton UPC: NA
Loose Medium Brown Organic – 1 box – carton UPC: NA
Loose Large Brown Organic -1 box – carton UPC: NA
Loose Jumbo Brown Cage Free – 1 box = 5 flats (1 flat = 20 eggs) – carton UPC: NA
Loose Jumbo Brown Organic – 1 box = 5 flats – carton UPC: NA
As of June 5, a total of 79 had been infected with salmonella across seven states, according to epidemiological information collected by The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). A total of 21 hospitalizations were reported, but no deaths.Illnesses started on dates ranging from February 24 to May 17, according to the FDA. Twenty-seven of the 30 cases for which information was available reported exposure to eggs before becoming ill.August Egg Company began diverting all eggs to an egg-breaking plant in May for at least 30 days, where eggs are pasteurized and processed into liquid or powdered egg products. It was not immediately clear if this was still the case now.The FDA conducted an inspection at August Egg Company’s processing facility following the outbreak, and two samples came back positive for salmonella. Genome sequencing subsequently matched the samples with the strain causing illnesses.What People Are SayingAugust Egg Company said in its recall announcement in June: “It is important to know that when our processing plant identified this concern, we immediately began diverting all eggs from the plant to an egg-breaking facility, which pasteurizes the eggs and kills any pathogens.”August Egg Company’s internal food safety team also is conducting its own stringent review to identify what measures can be established to prevent this situation from recurring. We are committed to addressing this matter fully and to implementing all necessary corrective actions to ensure this does not happen again.”The FDA said on its website: “Children younger than five, the elderly, and people with weakened immune systems are more likely to have severe salmonellosis infections.”Providing advise on how to minimize the risk of food contamination, it adds: “Wash the inside walls and shelves of the refrigerator, cutting boards and countertops, and utensils that may have contacted contaminated foods; then sanitize them with a solution of one tablespoon of chlorine bleach to one gallon of hot water; dry with a clean cloth or paper towel that has not been previously used.”People with pets should take special care to avoid cross-contamination when preparing their pet’s food. Be sure to pick up and thoroughly wash food dishes as soon as pets are done eating, and prevent children, the elderly, and any other people with weak immune systems from handling or being exposed to the food or pets that have eaten potentially contaminated food.”The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s guidance on salmonella says: “In some people, the illness may be so severe that the patient is hospitalized. Salmonella infection may spread from the intestines to the bloodstream and then to other parts of the body.”What Happens NextThe recall is listed as ongoing, according to the FDA.Consumers who may have purchased eggs impacted by this recall are urged to return them to their place of purchase for a full refund.