Plagues, Pestilences and Diseases
FDA investigates 2 egg farms tied to salmonella
By Elizabeth Weise, USA TODAY
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has added 40 illnesses
to the estimated 1,300 that have occurred already in the salmonella
enteritidis outbreak that forced the recall of half a billion eggs.
Meanwhile, the more than 20 Food and Drug Administration staffers on
site at the two implicated farms — Wright County Egg and Hillandale
Farms, both in Iowa— have completed their initial investigations, says
Jeff Farrar, the agency's associate commissioner for food protection.
"We're evaluating potential causes for contaminations on the farms
associated with this outbreak," he says.
There is currently "no evidence that other farms are involved in this
outbreak," but it's a continuing investigation and the FDA will follow
all sources where they lead, says Sherri McGarry, the FDA's coordinator
for food-borne outbreaks.
The agency hopes to have information available about what has been
found within the next week, Farrar says. For now, FDA Commissioner
Margaret Hamburg is telling consumers to avoid undercooked eggs — no
runny yolks.
The two farms shared a supplier of chicks and feed, Quality Egg.
The FDA is now investigating the pullet operations of Wright County
Egg. Pullets are young chickens being raised until they're large enough
to begin laying. The FDA says the supplier that provided them with
newly hatched chicks had been certified as free of salmonella
enteritidis for more than a decade. This might indicate that the
infection that developed later among the pullets was the source of the
infection in the laying hens, which then went on to infect the eggs.
Fallout from the outbreak and recall is renewing calls for Congress to
pass food-safety legislation.
Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., has sent a letter to the U.S. Department of
Agriculture and the FDA asking what they knew about Wright County Egg
and Quality Egg and when they knew it. Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., a
longtime advocate for food safety, has sent a letter to the companies
seeking more information.
The DeCoster family, which owns Wright County Egg and Quality Egg, has
a history of trouble with environmental, safety and employment issues.
Wright County Egg recalled 380 million eggs Aug. 13 after it was linked
to cases of salmonella poisoning. A week later, Hillandale Farms
recalled 170 million eggs. Hamburg said Monday that no eggs would be
shipped from the farms until the FDA is satisfied that they are
operating safely, The Des Moines Register reported.