The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced that carrots carrying E. coli have killed one person and made 39 others sick across 18 U.S. states.
According to WRIC 8 News, Virginia is one of the states impacted by the deadly carrot E. coli outbreak. The state with the most cases of reported illnesses is Washington, where eight people reported illness.
Grimmway Farms’ president and CEO Jeff Huckaby, said:
“We take our role in ensuring the safety and quality of our products seriously. The health of our customers and the integrity of our products are our highest priorities, and we are conducting a thorough review of our growing, harvest, and processing practices. Our food safety team is working with our suppliers and health authorities.”
Health officials urge the public to inspect refrigerators and freezers for potentially contaminated carrots after an E. coli outbreak has been linked to organic whole and baby carrots from a California farm.
Barbara Kowalcyk, Director of the Institute for Food Safety and Nutrition Security at George Washington University’s Milken Institute School of Public Health, emphasized the importance of discarding any carrots that may be part of the recall.