2 WA salmonella cases may be linked to peanut butter
SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) - Two recent cases of salmonella in Spokane County are thought to be associated with a nationwide outbreak linked to peanut butter, health officials said Thursday.
Nearly 300 people in 39 states have fallen ill since August, and federal health investigators said they strongly suspect Peter Pan peanut butter and certain batches of Wal-Mart's Great Value house brand - both manufactured by ConAgra Foods Inc.
Spokane Regional Health District epidemiologist Mark Springer said additional tests are needed to definitively link the Spokane County cases to the strain in this outbreak, Salmonella serotype Tennessee.
Springer urged consumers who bought Peter Pan or Wal-Mart's Great Value brands of peanut butter and who experience the flu-like symptoms to see a doctor.
Shoppers across the country were warned to throw out jars with a product code on the lid beginning with "2111," which denotes the plant where it was made.
The suspect peanut butter was produced by ConAgra at its only peanut butter plant, in Sylvester, Ga., federal investigators said.
ConAgra said it is not clear how many jars are affected by the recall. But the plant is the sole producer of the nationally distributed Peter Pan brand, and the recall covers all peanut butter - smooth and chunky alike - produced by the plant from May 2006 until now.
Symptoms include diarrhea, fever and abdominal cramps 12 to 72 hours after infection. The illness usually lasts 4 to 7 days and most recover without treatment, Springer said.
The elderly, infants, and those with impaired immune systems are most likely to have a severe illness.
Springer said Spokane County has 40-50 cases of the "fairly common" food-borne illness each year.
Nearly 300 people in 39 states have fallen ill since August, and federal health investigators said they strongly suspect Peter Pan peanut butter and certain batches of Wal-Mart's Great Value house brand - both manufactured by ConAgra Foods Inc.
Spokane Regional Health District epidemiologist Mark Springer said additional tests are needed to definitively link the Spokane County cases to the strain in this outbreak, Salmonella serotype Tennessee.
Springer urged consumers who bought Peter Pan or Wal-Mart's Great Value brands of peanut butter and who experience the flu-like symptoms to see a doctor.
Shoppers across the country were warned to throw out jars with a product code on the lid beginning with "2111," which denotes the plant where it was made.
The suspect peanut butter was produced by ConAgra at its only peanut butter plant, in Sylvester, Ga., federal investigators said.
ConAgra said it is not clear how many jars are affected by the recall. But the plant is the sole producer of the nationally distributed Peter Pan brand, and the recall covers all peanut butter - smooth and chunky alike - produced by the plant from May 2006 until now.
Symptoms include diarrhea, fever and abdominal cramps 12 to 72 hours after infection. The illness usually lasts 4 to 7 days and most recover without treatment, Springer said.
The elderly, infants, and those with impaired immune systems are most likely to have a severe illness.
Springer said Spokane County has 40-50 cases of the "fairly common" food-borne illness each year.