Egg Recall Affects the Health of San Diego Residents

Grocery shoppers out and about in San Diego have been especially cautious about their purchases as of late—particularly, of course, when it comes to the eggs. The effects of the recent recall haven’t bypassed San Diego County, with the numbers of salmonella illnesses in the area skyrocketing over the course of the past few months. About 380 million eggs from 20 U.S. States were deemed tainted with salmonella, and officials advised that they be thrown away. However, some of the little round fellas made their way into people’s stomachs before the recall was announced—resulting in 86 salmonella patients in San Diego County between late May and mid-August. Compare that number to the normal statistics—about two salmonella cases from January to May—and you’ll see just how large an impact the recall is having on San Diego alone.

The source of the salmonella contamination was linked to Wright County Eggs in Galt, Iowa, whose products were shipped far and wide under the brand names Albertsons, Ralph’s, Boomsma’s, Sunshine, Mountain Dairy, Hillandale, Kemps, Lucerne, Farm Fresh, Shoreland, Lund, Dutch Farms, and Trafficanda. Originally, only these brands, in varying carton sizes and with Julian dates ranging from 136 to 225 (plant numbers 1026, 1413 and 1946), were subject to the recall. But on Thursday, the company announced a further recall, including eggs in varying carton sizes from the brands Kemps, James Farms, Albertsons, Pacific Coast, Glenview, Farm Fresh, Ralphs, Mountain Dairy, Boomsma, and Lund. The Julian dates on those eggs range from 136-229 (plant numbers 1720 and 1942).

In order to prevent area residents from ingesting the damaged eggs and developing some rather uncomfortable symptoms—which include 4-7 days of fever, cramps, and diarrhea in the mildest cases—local businesses have taken safety precautions. For instance, according to NBC San Diego, Ralphs placed automatic calls to about 500,000 club card customers, warning them of the contamination. Affected customers can take their eggs to the supermarket and receive either a full refund or a replacement.

Photo from woodleywonderworks via flickr