Eating more fresh vegetables is supposed to be good for your health, but that turned out to be bad advice for the hundreds of people who have become sick from eating contaminated cucumbers distributed to numerous grocery stores and restaurants in the U.S. and Canada. So far, 53 victims have been hospitalized, and one person has died.

More than half of the people who have become ill from this outbreak of Salmonella Poona have been children and teens. While it’s good to hear that the children of the U.S. and Canada are eating their vegetables, bacterial infections tend to make people sicker if they’re very young, very old, or very frail or immunocompromised.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention know that the cucumbers were distributed to the following states: Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, and Utah. They may have been distributed further than that: if you aren’t sure where a cucumber came from, the authorities note, check with the store where you purchased it, or just don’t eat it.

The affected cucumbers have also been recalled: you can see the box they were distributed in above, which isn’t very useful information to a home cook.

There’s already a lawsuit from this outbreak: a woman in Minnesota who may have eaten an affected cucumber in her salad at a Red Lobster restaurant has sued the chain.

If you have any questions about the recall, contact the distributor at (844) 483-3864. If you or a child you care for experience abdominal pain and fever after eating cucumbers, contact your health care provider, especially if you have other health problems.

Andrew and Williamson Fresh Produce Recalls Limited Edition Brand® Cucumbers Because of Possible Health Risk [FDA]
Multistate Outbreak of Salmonella Poona Infections Linked to Imported Cucumbers [CDC]
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