Six Utahns have contracted salmonellosis in connection with a recently announced recall of a 6.5 million-pound batch of beef from Arizona that was possibly contaminated with salmonella, according to the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food.
Four more suspected Utah cases are awaiting final confirmation, according to a news release from the department. The same beef has been linked to at least 57 cases of salmonellosis in 16 states. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, this outbreak has causes 14 hospitalizations. No one has died.
Testing indicates Arizona company JBS Tolleson Inc. sold the beef, which includes raw, non-intact beef items, such as ground beef, that were packed between July 26 and Sept. 7. The recalled beef is labeled with the establishment number “EST 267.”
Those who purchased beef with that establishment number should throw it away or return it to the store where it was bought, according to the news release. Those who don’t know where their beef came from should cook it to an internal temperature of 160 degree or higher before eating.
Eating food contaminated with salmonella can cause salmonellosis, a common bacterial foodborne illness. Symptoms can appear with 12 hours or seven days of eating the food and include diarrhea, stomach cramps and fever. The illness typically lasts for four to seven days.
In the U.S., the CDC estimates salmonella causes 1.2 million illnesses, 23,000 hospitalizations and 450 deaths each year.
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