300 People Sickened by Salmonella Due to Tainted Peanut Butter

By Linda Orlando

A salmonella outbreak that began in August has now grown to nearly 300 cases in 39 states. Investigators with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have been researching the outbreak to determine its source, but with only two cases or fewer being reported each day, tracking down the culprit has been difficult.

In the past few days federal health officials were able to hone in on one particular food, according to Dr. Mike Lynch, a CDC epidemiologist, who said that the culprit appears to be peanut butter. It is believed to be the first time in U.S. history that a salmonella outbreak has been associated with peanut butter.

Salmonellosis, the official name of the illness, kills about 600 people each year. About 20% of the 288 people infected in this recent outbreak have been hospitalized, but so far no one has died, said Lynch. Symptoms of salmonella can include abdominal pain, diarrhea, vomiting, fever, and dehydration. The infection sickens about 40,000 Americans each year, according to the CDC.

In approximately 85% of the cases being studied by the CDC, the patients said that they ate peanut butter. The greatest numbers of cases have been reported in Tennessee, Virginia, New York, Pennsylvania, and Missouri. According to the FDA, the CDC’s investigations led them to ConAgra, to a single manufacturing facility in Sylvester, Georgia. Although officials are still investigating how salmonella got into the peanut butter, the FDA is warning consumers not to eat certain jars of Peter Pan or Great Value peanut butter in order to avoid contamination.

The jars that may pose a risk have a product code on the lid that begins with the number 2111. ConAgra is recalling all Peter Pan and Great Value peanut butter jars with that code that have already been distributed, and the company is destroying all affected products still in warehouses at the plant. The company will cease peanut butter production until the exact cause of contamination is discovered and removed.

The FDA has a team of investigators working in ConAgra’s processing plant in Sylvester to review records, examine production areas, collect peanut butter samples, and conduct testing for salmonella bacteria. In the meantime, ConAgra and the FDA are advising consumers to destroy any Peter Pan and Great Value brand peanut butter with a product code on the lid beginning with 2111.