(NEW YORK) — At least 55 people have been sickened in a salmonella and E. coli outbreak linked to alfalfa sprouts in 15 states, health officials said Friday.
At least 4 people have been hospitalized.
The Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have posted an official outbreak notice on their websites.
Forty-six people were infected with E. coli, seven people were infected with salmonella and two individuals were infected with both salmonella and E. coli, officials said.
Illnesses started on dates ranging from May 31 to Aug. 8, officials said. The true number of people sick is likely higher than the numbers reported.
“The illnesses have been linked to eating alfalfa sprouts produced by Everything Sprouts, a Minnesota grower, and sold under the Calco and Everything Sprouts brands to restaurants and grocery stores,” Minnesota’s Department of Health said in a statement. “Health officials recommend people check for alfalfa sprouts from Calco or Everything Sprouts, not eat them, and throw them away.”
On Aug. 19, the FDA initiated an inspection and sample collection at Everything Sprouts, recommending the company conduct a recall. The FDA is warning consumers and retailers not to eat or serve the contaminated products.
The FDA had warned Everything Sprouts last year of “serious violations” following an inspection the agency had conducted at its facility. Inspectors determined the company had “insanitary conditions whereby [produce] may have become contaminated with filth, or whereby they may have been rendered injurious to heath.”
FDA inspectors said they had found multiple problems, including roof leaks with water dripping onto produce and clean employee smocks. There was also “build-up of black organic matter” on a hose of the overhead irrigation system for produce, inspectors said.
ABC News has reached out to Everything Sprouts for comment.
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