Mushrooms are linked to salmonella outbreaks in 10 states

More than 40 people have gotten sick and four have been hospitalized, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said late last week.

SHARE Mushrooms are linked to salmonella outbreaks in 10 states
The product suspected in the outbreak is wood ear mushrooms distributed by Wismettac Asian Foods based near Los Angeles.

Mushrooms are suspected in a recent salmonella outbreak.

Victor Hilitski/For the Sun-Times

LOS ANGELES — Federal officials are warning of salmonella cases in at least 10 states linked to dried mushrooms from a Southern California company.

More than 40 people have gotten sick and four have been hospitalized, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said late last week.

The product suspected in the outbreak is wood ear mushrooms distributed by Wismettac Asian Foods based near Los Angeles. The company has recalled all of its Shirakiku brand imported mushrooms that were distributed to restaurants in six packs of five-pound bags, the CDC said.

Wismettac Asian Foods voluntarily recalled the 5-pound bags of dried fungus that were imported from China because of “the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems,” the company said on its website.

Some of those who got sick ate at restaurants serving ramen in three states, officials said.

The states where cases have been reported are: Arizona, California, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Restaurant employees should check for recalled dried mushrooms and not serve or sell them, officials said.

Most people infected with salmonella develop diarrhea, fever and stomach cramps six hours to six days after being exposed to the bacteria, the CDC said. Symptoms usually lasts four to seven days, and most people recover without treatment.

However, salmonella can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems.

Contributing: USA Today

The Latest
Only two days after an embarrassing loss to lowly Washington, the Bulls put on a defensive clinic against Indiana.
One woman suffered a gunshot wound to the neck. In each incident, the four to five men armed with rifles, handguns and knives, approached victims on the street in Logan Square, Portage Park, Avondale, Hermosa threatened or struck them before taking their belongings, police said.
For as big of a tournament moment as Terrence Shannon Jr. is having, it hasn’t been deemed “madness” because, under the brightest lights, he has been silent.
This year, to continue making history, the Illini will have to get past No. 2-seeded Iowa State.