This post was updated on August 28, 2020.
Millions of peaches, peaches for me, millions of peaches, peaches for me – LOOK OUT!
The FDA and CDC are continuing to investigate a multi-state outbreak of Salmonella linked to peaches supplied by Prima Wawona and Wawona Packing.
As of August 27th, 2020 the CDC is reporting 78 cases across 12 states in the Midwest and Northeast.
Peaches Recall Timeline
On August 19th, the Minnesota Department of Health reported that people were sick with Salmonella Enteritidis and the strain tracked back to Wawona peaches from Aldi.
Once Wawona Packing was made aware of the epidemiological evidence from the FDA and CDC, Wawona voluntarily recalled bagged peaches that were distributed as far back as June.
August 22nd to current
Prime Wawona and Wawona Packing supply bagged, bulk and loose peaches to many retailers and wholesalers.
Wawona expanded the recall to include these additional retailers:
Aldi
Food Lion
Hannaford
Kroger and affiliates
Jay-C
King Soopers
City Market
Fry’s
Ralphs
Food 4 Less
Foods Co.
Smiths
Target
Walmart
Wegmans
The Food Safety Insider will keep this page updated as we receive more detail.
These recalls are due to concerns of the potential for contamination by Salmonella.
Salmonella Frequently Asked Questions
Salmonella is an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems.
Salmonella bacteria can cause diarrheal illness in humans. Salmonella are microscopic bacteria that are passed from the feces of people or animals to other people or other animals.
If food is contaminated with salmonella, it does not usually affect the taste, smell or appearance of the food.
Persons with diarrhea usually recover completely, although it may be several months before their bowel habits are entirely normal.
A small number of persons who are infected with Salmonella may develop pains in their joints, irritation of the eyes, and painful urination.
This is called Reiter’s syndrome.
It can last for months or years and can lead to chronic arthritis that is difficult to treat.
Salmonella lives in the intestinal tract of humans and other animals, including birds.
Salmonella is usually transmitted to humans by eating foods contaminated with animal feces.
Salmonella can cause foodborne illness (salmonellosis) through cross-contamination, e.g., when juices from raw meat or poultry come in contact with ready-to-eat foods, such as salads or potentially in this case salsa.
Food may also become contaminated by the unwashed hands of an infected food handler who might or might not be showing symptoms.
Salmonella can also be found in the feces of some pets, especially those with diarrhea.
People can become infected if they do not wash their hands after contact with these feces.
Reptiles are particularly likely to harbor Salmonella.
People should always wash their hands immediately after handling a reptile, even if the reptile is healthy.
In this case, Thomson red onions are believed to be the source of the Salmonella contamination.
The bacteria can also contaminate other foods that come in contact with raw meat and poultry.