It's a Match - Salmonella from Pistachios Linked to Illnesses

Washington, DCOn March 26, 2009 the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) informed the Center for Disease Control (CDC) that multiple samples of pistachios and pistachio-containing products collected from Setton Pistachio of Terra Bella Inc, of Terra Bella, California were contaminated with several serotypes of Salmonella, including Montevideo, Newport, and Senftenberg. Since that time, the CDC has been actively investigating whether this contamination is linked to foodborne human illness.

The FDA has provided the CDC with the DNA fingerprints of the Salmonella strains found in Setton's products. Some of these fingerprints already match the DNA fingerprints of Salmonella strains from recently ill persons.

The CDC is collaborating with state and local public health agencies to interview persons with Salmonella strains having DNA fingerprints that match those from the pistachio products to determine whether they had eaten pistachio nuts or pistachio-containing products before their illnesses. Already, one patient in Connecticut infected with a Salmonella strain with a matching DNA fingerprint has reported consuming a pistachio-containing product.

All of the contaminated pistachios came from Setton Pistachio of Terra Bella Inc. Setton has stopped distribution of roasted shelled, roasted in-shell, and raw shelled pistachios from their 2008 crop and has issued a recall of those products. Companies that receive pistachios from Setton Pistachio continue to recall their products. The contaminated pistachios may have been used in a wide range of foods, including cakes, cookies, puddings, trail mix, snack bars, and ice cream.