According to data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a total of 388 people in 42 states were infected. Authorities suggest the cases come from a particular strain called Salmonella typhimurium, most commonly connected to poultry, cheese and eggs. There are nearly 2,500 kinds of salmonella. The type in the recent outbreak is one of the most common types.

 

“It is often difficult to identify sources of foodborne outbreaks. People may not remember the foods they recently ate and may not be aware of all of the ingredients in food. That's what makes these types of investigations very difficult,” said CDC spokesman David Daigle.

 

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Department of Agriculture are working to determine the source of the outbreak.

 

Another outbreak of salmonella sickened more than 1,000 people from April through August last year. The salmonella problem was first associated to tomatoes, but the CDC later identified jalapeno peppers as the source of the outbreak. The tests that were carried out by the agency found traces of the salmonella Saintpaul, the strain that caused the outbreak, on serrano peppers from a farm in Nuevo Leon. The bacteria was also found in water at that farm. The FDA said that the process of tracking the source of the outbreak was slowed down because there wasn’t any system to follow the path of fresh food products from their producers to the consumers.

 

Another 401 cases in 41 states were reported in November, caused by the bacterium in microwaveable pot pies. Since 1998, Minnesota has been struck by at least four other outbreaks linked to pre-browned chicken and problems with microwave instructions.

 

Salmonellosis is a bacterial infection that lives in the intestinal tracts of human and other animals. The bacterium is usually transmitted to humans by eating foods contaminated with animal feces. It can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail in elderly people and others with weakened immune system.

 

Most people recover from salmonella illness without special treatment, but cases of severe diarrhea require medical attention and there’s a risk of infection spreading from the intestines to the bloodstream, a condition that could turn fatal.

 

Consumers can reduce their risk from foodborne illness by following safe food-handling recommendations and avoiding the consumption of unpasteurized milk, raw or undercooked oysters, raw or undercooked eggs, raw or undercooked ground beef, and undercooked poultry. Keep raw meats, fish and poultry from other food that will not be cooked.