An Idaho company has voluntarily recalled whole, raw onions shipped from Mexico following a salmonella outbreak that has sickened hundreds of people in 37 U.S. states. Federal health regulators have issued an alert urging people to throw the onions away.
ProSource Produce LLC is recalling red, yellow and white whole raw onions shipped from Chihuahua, Mexico, between July 1, 2021, and August 31, 2021. The products were shipped to 35 states and two Canadian provinces. They were sent to retailers, wholesalers and foodservice customers under the following brand names:
- Big Bull
- Peak Fresh Produce
- Sierra Madre
- Markon First Crop.
- Markon Essentials
- Rio Blue
- ProSource
- Rio Valley
- Sysco Imperial
The advice from health officials is to throw out these onions and wash or sanitize any surfaces they have been on. It's also advised to do this if you don't know the brand name or the origin of the onions.
Hailey, Idaho-based ProSource said none of its onions have tested positive for salmonella, but that the recall is happening under an abundance of caution based on reports of illnesses that have been associated with possible consumption of the onions.
There have been 652 reports of people getting sick in 37 states, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A reported 129 have ended up in the hospital. There have been no deaths. But the CDC said the number of people sickened could be higher if people recovered quickly without needing medical attention.
Most people infected with Salmonella experience diarrhea, fever, and stomach cramps, according to the CDC. Symptoms usually form within six hours of swallowing the bacteria and most people recover in 4-7 days without treatment.
Children under age 5, adults 65 and older and people with weakened immune systems may experience more severe illness that may lead to hospitalization.
Here is a list of the states where people have reported getting sick and how many cases in each state.
- Alabama - 3
- Arkansas - 12
- California - 9
- Colorado - 1
- Connecticut - 4
- Florida - 5
- Georgia - 2
- Illinois - 37
- Indiana - 1
- Iowa - 3
- Kansas - 14
- Kentucky - 9
- Louisiana - 5
- Maryland - 48
- Massachusetts - 12
- Michigan - 9
- Minnesota - 23
- Mississippi - 2
- Missouri - 21
- Nebraska - 8
- New Jersey - 5
- New Mexico - 8
- New York - 12
- North Carolina - 14
- North Dakota - 4
- Ohio - 7
- Oklahoma - 98
- Oregon - 2
- Pennsylvania - 7
- South Carolina - 3
- South Dakota - 8
- Tennessee - 10
- Texas - 158
- Utah - 3
- Virginia - 59
- West Virginia - 1
- Wisconsin - 25