There were many food poisoning outbreaks in 2018. Thousands of people were sickened, many were hospitalized, and some died. This is a summary of the top 10 multistate food poisoning outbreaks of the year. Many lawsuits were filed in response to these outbreaks.
- McDonald’s Cyclospora Outbreak. This outbreak sickened at least 511 people in 16 states, mostly concentrated in the Midwest. FDA investigators found the cyclospora oocyst in a sample of Fresh Express romaine and carrot mix that was used to make the salads.
- JBS Tolleson Ground Beef Salmonella Outbreak. This outbreak, which has not been declared over, has sickened at least 333 people in 28 states. The company has recalled more than 12,000,000 pounds of ground beef products that were sold in Kroger stores and elsewhere around the country.
- Fareway/Triple T Chicken Salad Salmonella Outbreak. More than 260 people were sickened in this outbreak. Ninety-four people were hospitalized for their illnesses, and one person living in Iowa died.
- Del Monte Cyclospora Outbreak. This outbreak sickened 260 people in just four states. The illnesses were linked to pre-packaged vegetable trays that were sold primarily at Kwik Trip and Kwik Star facilities in the upper Midwest. The vegetable trays were made of broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, and dill dip.
- Salmonella Reading Turkey Outbreak. This is another outbreak that is still ongoing. As of December 18, 2018, 216 people were sick. Eighty-four people were hospitalized, and one person who lived in California died. People sickened in this outbreak ate turkey prepared at home, worked with live turkeys, or had pets in their home who were fed raw turkey pet food.
- Romaine Lettuce E. coli O157:H7 HUS Outbreak. This is the first of two outbreaks linked to romaine lettuce in 2018. Another romaine E. coli outbreak, which did not make the Top 10 List, is ongoing. In this outbreak, 201 people in 36 states were sickened, 96 were hospitalized and five people, who lived inMinnesota, California, Arkansas, and New York, died.
- Honey Smacks Salmonella Mbandaka Outbreak. This outbreak, which was linked to Kellogg’s Honey Smacks cereal, sickened at least 135 people in 36 states. Thirty-four people were hospitalized because they were so sick, which is a very high rate for a Salmonella outbreak.
- Hy Vee Spring Pasta Salad Salmonella Outbreak. Two types of Salmonella bacteria, Sandiego and enteric subspecies IIIb, sickened at least 101 people in 10 states.
- Salmonella Infantis Outbreak Linked to Raw Chicken. This outbreak sickened at least 92 people in 29 states. Twenty-one people were hospitalized. This outbreak was unusual because a single supplier of raw chicken wasn’t identified. The CDC just stated that many types of raw chicken are contaminated and are making people sick.
- Salmonella Adelaide Outbreak Linked to Precut Melons. This outbreak sickened at least 77 people in 9 states. The melons were supplied stores grocery stores by Caito Foods. The outbreak was linked to cantaloupes, watermelon, and a fruit salad mix made with cut melons.
Many serious outbreaks did not make the list this year, including the ongoing romaine lettuce E. coli O157:H7 outbreak, and the two Salmonella outbreaks that were linked to shell eggs. These outbreaks are a reminder to consumers to cook these potentially contaminated foods, which include chicken, turkey, ground beef, and eggs, to a safe final temperature before they are eaten, and to stay informed about FDA and USDA recalls and warnings.
