A Nebraska alfalfa sprouts Salmonella Typhimurium outbreak has sickened at least 12 people as of December 23, 2022, according to the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services (NDHHS), in collaboration with the Nebraska Department of Agriculture, Douglas County Health Department, Sarpy/Cass Health Department, and the Three Rivers Public Health Department. The patient age range has not been released, and there is no word on whether anyone has been hospitalized.
Those 12 patients ate alfalfa sprouts between December 4, 2022 and December 15, 2022. The sprouts were consumed either at local restaurants or in their homes after the patients bought them from local grocery stores.
The NDHHS is recommending that the public avoid eating alfalfa sprouts while this investigation continues. The government will share more information as it becomes available.
This is the first sproutbreak in a couple of years. In 2020, an E. coli O103 outbreak linked to raw clover sprouts sold at Jimmy John’s restaurants sickened at least 51 people in 10 states. Three people were hospitalized because they were so sick in that outbreak.
Raw sprouts are considered risky by public health officials, especially for people who are more vulnerable to complications from food poisoning, for several reasons. First, the seeds that the sprouts are grown from can be contaminated on the inside, so any washing is ineffective. And second, the growing environment for sprouts, which is moist and warm, is the ideal environment for bacterial growth.
Symptoms of a Salmonella food poisoning infection typically start six hours to six days after eating food contaminated with the pathogen. People usually suffer from fever, chills, headache, nausea, vomiting, stomach pain, abdominal cramps, and diarrhea that may be bloody. Complications from this infection can include reactive arthritis, endocarditis, high blood pressure, and irritable bowel syndrome, even after full recovery.
If you have eaten alfalfa sprouts and you live in Nebraska, especially in those counties, and have been ill with those symptoms, see your doctor. You may be part of this Nebraska alfalfa sprouts Salmonella Typhimurium outbreak.
If you have been sickened with a Salmonella Typhimurium infection after eating raw alfalfa sprouts, please contact our experienced attorneys for help with a possible lawsuit at 1-888-377-8900 or text us at 612-261-0856. Our firm represents clients in lawsuits against grocery stores, restaurants, and food processors.
