Organic sprouted chia powder was responsible for an unusual Salmonella outbreak — which now appears to be over — that sickened 31 people in 16 states. It was unusual in that the organic sprouted chia powder was said to be responsible for three strains of Salmonella in the single outbreak.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports the organic sprouted Chia powder resulted in 20 cases of Salmonella Newport, seven cases of Salmonella Hartford, and another four with Salmonella Oranienburg. Five of the 31 sickened required hospitalization. No deaths were reported. CDC says the outbreak “appears to be over.” The Atlanta-based agency on Wednesday issued what is likely to be its final report on the outbreak. Organic sprouted chia powder is made from chia seeds that are spouted, dried and ground. The outbreak investigation prompted several recalls of organic sprouted chia powder and chia seeds. CDC says that although the outbreak appears to be over, these products have a long shelf life and it’s unlikely that all have been discarded. CDC recommends not eating any of the recalled organic sprouted chia powder and chia seeds. Products recalled were widely distributed throughout the United States and Canada. CDC’s National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System (NARMS) laboratory conducted antibiotic resistance testing on Salmonella isolates collected from four ill persons infected with Salmonella Hartford or Newport. All isolates were pansusceptible (susceptible to all antibiotics tested).
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This is part 1 of a 3-part series.
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