The Raw Story: Some frozen chicken entrees look like they're cooThe outbreak of Salmonella Enteritidis linked to raw, frozen, stuffed and breaded chicken entrées produced by Barber Foods appears to be over, says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This outbreak was not connected with an outbreak of Salmonella Enteritidis infections linked to raw, frozen, stuffed chicken entrees produced by Aspen Foods. A total of 15 people infected with the outbreak strains of Salmonella Enteritidis were reported from seven states: Connecticut (1), Illinois (2), Minnesota (8), New Hampshire (1), New York (1), Oklahoma (1), and Wisconsin (1). Illness onset dates ranged from April 5 to July 27, 2015. Ill people ranged in age from 4 years to 82, and more than half of them were female. Among 10 people with available information, 4 were hospitalized. No deaths were reported. Of the four isolates tested by CDC’s National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System (NARMS) laboratory, all were resistant to ampicillin and tetracycline. Antibiotic resistance may be associated with increased risk of hospitalization, development of a bloodstream infection, or treatment failure in patients. The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) and the Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) collected 15 samples of unopened frozen chicken entrées produced by Barber Foods from retail locations for laboratory testing. MDA isolated Salmonella from 14 of these samples; an outbreak strain was isolated from one sample. In addition, MDH and MDA collected four samples of unopened Barber Foods chicken Kiev from two ill people’s homes for laboratory testing. MDA and MDH isolated a Salmonella outbreak strain from three of these samples, which were collected from both households. As a result of the investigation, Barber Foods recalled several brands of frozen, raw, stuffed and breaded chicken entrées. On July 2, 2015, the company recalled approximately 58,320 pounds of Chicken Kiev. Ten days later, they issued an expanded recall of approximately 1.7 million pounds of frozen, raw stuffed chicken products that may have been contaminated with Salmonella Enteritidis. On July 13, 2015, Omaha Steaks announced a recall of stuffed chicken breast products manufactured by Barber Foods that may be contaminated with Salmonella. A full list of recalled products and photos are available on CDC’s Advice to Consumers page. CDC states that the outbreak appears to be over, but the recalled raw, frozen, stuffed and breaded chicken products have a long shelf life and may still be in people’s freezers. Consumers unaware of the recall could continue to eat the products and potentially get sick. epi-curve-10-16-2015map-10-15-2015 (To sign up for a free subscription to Food Safety News, click here.)