FDA Issues Salmonella Alert For Raw Alfalfa Sprouts

Boston (HealthKnowItAll) - The FDA have issued an alert pertaining to raw alfalfa sprouts which have been found to be contaminated with salmonella bacteria.

According to the FDA, the contamination appears to be in the seeds, therefore washing your raw sprouts will not help remove the bacteria.

Consumers are being urged not to eat sprouts at this time, until the FDA can figure out which kinds are actually contaminated.

“Other types of sprouts have not been implicated at this time,” the agency said.

“FDA will work with the alfalfa sprout industry to help identify which seeds and alfalfa sprouts are not connected with this contamination, so that this advisory can be changed as quickly as possible.”

So far the alert applies to the states of Michigan, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Utah, and West Virginia, who have reported a total of 31 cases of salmonella poisoning since the beginning of March.

“This outbreak appears to be an extension of an earlier outbreak in 2009. In February and March, an outbreak of Salmonella Saintpaul infections occurred in Nebraska, South Dakota, Iowa, Kansas, and Minnesota,” the FDA added.