Salmonella Tied to Foster Farm's Chicken, Almost 300 Left Sick

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued a public health safety announcement on Tuesday after nearly 300 people in 18 states were left sick from raw chicken packaged at three Foster Farms facilities in California, government officials said.

"The outbreak is continuing," the USDA said in a statement, however recalls for specific chicken products have been issued at this time. The facilities operated by Foster Farms have been named as the likely source of raw chicken contaminated with a strain of bacteria known as salmonella Heidelberg, according to the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service. 

In the meantime, customers are cautioned to check their Foster Farm chicken packaging and look for these packaging codes: P6137; P6137A and P7632. The products were distributed mainly to outlets in California, Oregon and Washington state.

Meanwhile, Foster Farms said in a statement it is working with USDA inspectors and the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to find the root cause of the outbreak. The company believes the infections were caused by eating undercooked or improperly handled chicken.

Salmonella is a bacterial disease that infects the intestinal tract and can cause typhoid fever, food poisoning, gastroenteritis, enteric fever and other illnesses. Salmonella is mostly passed through contaminated water or foods, particularly meat, poultry and eggs.

Meanwhile, the Salmonella Heidelberg is a common strain which can be particularly lethal for those with HIV or cancer, and weaker immune systems such as children and the elderly.

"When the incidence of illnesses linked to Salmonella increased, we wanted to know why and have worked quickly to identify and implement additional controls," Robert O' Connor, Foster Farm's food safety chief and head veterinarian said in the statement. "It is also important to reassure the public that the FSIS process has not been affected by the recent government shutdown," he added.

However, this is not the first time that Foster Farm's has landed in hot water. The Livingston, CA-based company was previously linked to another salmonella outbreak-134 illnesses in 13 states-in July, the CDC Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported.

To protect against the potential risk of salmonella transmission, all poultry products should be cooked to an internal temperature of 165 to kill disease-carrying pathogens. It is also important to properly wash hands and cooking surfaces before and after cooking.