E. coli Detected in Organic Spinach Salad Sickens 28 and Causes Recall

According to Food Safety News, a multistate E. coli outbreak from the Organic Spinach and Spring Mix Blend salad makings has sickened 28 and put 10 in the hospital. Two of those hospitalized have developed a kidney threatening infection called hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS).

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has public health investigators using DNA “fingerprints” of E. coli bacteria with pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, PFGE, to identify cases related to this outbreak.

Twenty two of the twenty eight cases have been in New York. Connecticut and Massachusetts have each had two cases, and Pennsylvania and Virginia have each had one.

The CDC has announced that state, local, and federal public health regulatory agencies believe Wegmans brand Organic Spinach and Spring Mix blend produced by State Garden of Chelsea, Massachusetts is one probable source of the outbreak.

Wegmans has recalled 5-ounce and 11-ounce packages of the affected product and have removed them from shelves. The CDC has warned people not to eat the salads, especially young children, the elderly, and those with a weak immune system because they are at higher risk of developing a serious illness.

“Individuals infected with E. coli typically experience nausea, stomach cramps, vomiting and diarrhea,” states Dr. Jason Dobranic Ph.D., EMSL’s Vice President of Microbiology & Life Sciences. “EMSL Analytical, one of the industry’s leading food testing laboratories, uses various validated methods that are recognized and accepted by regulatory agencies, and offers rapid pathogen screens when appropriate and requested.”

For more information about EMSL’s testing services, please contact EMSL at 800-220-3675, email info@EMSL.com , or visit www.EMSL.com.

About EMSL Analytical, Inc.
EMSL Analytical is a full service testing company providing quality lab services under the same private ownership since 1981. Including the corporate lab facility in Cinnaminson, NJ, EMSL Analytical operates over thirty laboratories nationwide in the US and Canada. We provide analytical services for environmental, indoor air quality (IAQ), industrial hygiene, forensics and materials science, consumer products, food safety, PCR, pharmaceutical, asbestos, lead, and radiological samples. The company has an extensive list of accreditations from leading organizations, as well as state and federal regulating bodies.

Contact Information

Joseph Frasca

Senior Vice President of Marketing

EMSL Analytical

(1) 1-800-220-3675

jfrasca@emsl.com