Not just another turkey recall

The Salmonella strain that sickened 12 people in 10 states and triggered last week’s recall of 54,960 pounds of Jennie-O turkey burgers may be resistant to antibiotics, the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced April 4.

According to the CDC, Salmonella Hadar is resistant to many commonly prescribed antibiotics, including ampicillin, amoxicillin/clavulanate, cephalothin and tetracycline, which may increase the risk of hospitalization or possible treatment failure in infected individuals.

On April 1, Jennie-O Turkey Store announced a nationwide recall of 4-pound boxes of frozen Jennie-O Turkey Store® “All Natural Turkey Burgers with seasonings Lean White Meat” containing 12 individually wrapped 1/3-pound burgers after they were linked to 12 confirmed cases of Salmonella Hadar in Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, Washington and Wisconsin, with illnesses occurring between December 2010 and March 2011. Three of the patients in Colorado, Ohio and Wisconsin specifically reported eating this product prior to illness onset and hospitalization; the last of these illnesses was reported on March 14, 2011.

Advice to consumers:

• Recalled turkey burgers may still be in grocery stores and in consumers’ homes, including in the freezer. Consumer should not eat recalled turkey burgers and food service operators should not serve them.
• The recalling firm is asking customers to return the product to the place of purchase for a refund.  Individuals choosing not to return the product should dispose of the recalled turkey burgers in a closed plastic bag placed in a sealed trash can. This will prevent people or animals from eating them.
• Wash hands, kitchen work surfaces, and utensils with soap and water immediately after they have been in contact with raw meat or poultry. Then, disinfect the food contact surfaces using a sanitizing agent, such as bleach, following label instructions.
• Cook poultry thoroughly. Be particularly careful with foods prepared for infants, the elderly, and the immune-compromised.
• If served undercooked poultry in a restaurant, send it back to the kitchen for further cooking.
• Cross-contamination of foods should be avoided. Uncooked meats should be kept separate from produce, cooked foods, and ready-to-eat foods. Hands, cutting boards, counters, knives, and other utensils should be washed thoroughly after touching uncooked foods. Hands should be washed before handling food, and between handling different food items.
• Persons who think they might have become ill from eating possibly contaminated turkey burgers should consult their health care providers. Infants, elderly persons, and persons with impaired immune systems are more likely than others to develop severe illness.

Source: http://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/hadar0411/040411/index.html