BILLINGS — Officials at RiverStone Health confirmed at least one confirmed case of salmonella in Yellowstone County amid a nationwide cucumber recall.
The recall of cucumbers, which are distributed by Arizona company SunFed, is affecting 26 states, including Montana. The recall affects any of SunFed's cucumbers purchased between Oct. 12 and Nov. 26.
RiverStone Health Communicable Diseases Program Manager Stacie Pannell is encouraging all residents to take a second look at their cucumbers.
"We had one case of salmonella infection in early November," Pannell said Monday afternoon. "If you don't know where your cucumbers came from, chuck it out."
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Pannell said that while they don't know for certain that the cucumbers are the source of the salmonella until their investigation is complete, they are investigating the situation thoroughly.
"We don't know yet if this cucumber is the food vehicle, but it has been linked through epidemiology," Pannell said. “We ask about anything they’ve eaten, anything they’ve come in contact with it that could be the source of it. Oftentimes, we don't know the cause until the food has run its course."
From the federal Centers for Disease Control & Prevention website:
The whole fresh American cucumbers were sold by Baloian and other importers and shipped to customers located in the states of California, Arizona, Texas, Michigan, Montana, North Carolina, Colorado, Kansas, New York, Massachusetts, Idaho, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, Iowa, Missouri, Wisconsin, Alaska and the Canadian provinces of Alberta and British Columbia. The cucumbers would have reached consumers through foodservice and retail outlets that may be located in states other than those listed above.
Baloian initiated this recall after learning from SunFed Produce, LLC, that its supplier of American cucumbers, “Agrotato, S.A. de C.V.,” may be associated with reported salmonellosis illnesses between October 12 – and November 15, 2024. Discussions with the US Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) confirmed this. Baloian is also contacting its direct buyers to advise them of the recall and ask that they, in turn, notify their customers. No other products sold by or farms supplying to Baloian are implicated in this recall.
There is some positive news, as it pertains to the salmonella outbreak. Billings Clinic Infectious Disease Specialists Dr. Neil Ku said that in most cases, the illness is manageable.
"Most of these infections are fairly self-limited," Ku said Monday afternoon. "You'll probably have a couple days of diarrhea and then it goes away."
Ku said that the larger concern is the recent uptick in food-borne illnesses leading to recalls. McDonalds and other fast food chains recently underwent a large onion recall due to an E. Coli outbreak, and even more recently, large chain stores like Trader Joe's, Target and Costco had a recall of their carrots.
Ku said that these issues stem from large production companies sending their produce around the country.
"If any of it gets contaminated, you'll see it not just in one place but in many other places," Ku said. "That's the main reason why you get these multi-state recalls that affects a lot of people."
Ku said there's also a misconception for shoppers when at the grocery store that all of the food is clean, which doesn't help.
"Assuming that it's in the grocery store and it must be clean," Ku said. "They don't take the necessary precaution, and that's when issues can emerge."
That's why Ku and RiverStone Health are encouraging residents to take a closer look at their cucumbers and wash all of their produce anyways.
"If it doesn't have a sticker on it, it's probably best to throw it away," Pannell said. "If it has the SunFed sticker, unfortunately, you definitely need to trash it."
(NOVEMBER 29, 2024) A recall of SunFed Produce cucumbers sold in Montana has been issued due to possible salmonella contamination connected to an "active illness outbreak."
The Arizona-based company issued the recall this week in 26 states, including Montana, for cucumbers sold between October 12, 2024, and November 26, 2024.
As of Friday, 16 cases had been reported in Montana, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control - more than any other state. There is no word yet on what specific stores sold the cucumbers.
There have been 68 cases confirmed across the nation, with 18 of them requiring hospitalization.
People should look for a “SunFed Mexico” sticker on the producer and throw away or return the cucumbers.
After the cucumbers are disposed of, people should wash items and surfaces that may have touched the recalled cucumbers.
Salmonella can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems.
Healthy people infected with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain.
In rare circumstances, the organism can enter the bloodstream and produce more severe illnesses, such as arterial infections.
Symptoms of salmonella usually start six hours to six days after infection and last four to seven days.
