211K Pounds Of Ground Turkey Sold As Wegmans Or Nature Promise Brands Could Be Contaminated With Salmonella

WASHINGTON, D.C. (WJZ) -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) issued a public health alert for about 211,406 pounds of raw ground turkey products sold at Wegman's or as the Nature's Promise brand Saturday.

The ground turkey, which was produced by Pennsylvania-based Plainville Brands, LLC, may have caused illnesses related to salmonella. It was not recalled because its believed the product is no longer available for consumers to purchase, however it may be in your freezer.

The FSIS says these products should be immediately thrown away and not consumed.

The raw ground turkey products were produced on December 18, 2020 through December 29, 2020. The following products are subject to the public health alert:

• 1-lb. packages of Nature's Promise Free from 94% LEAN | 6% FAT Ground Turkey with Use by/freeze/sell by date of 1/1/21, 1/3/21,1/4/21, 1/8/21 and 1/10/21 on the front of the package.
• 1-lb. packages of Wegman 94% LEAN | 6% FAT Ground Turkey with Use by/freeze/sell by date of 1/3/21, 1/4/21, 1/8/21 and 1/10/21 on the front of the package.
• 3-lb. packages of Wegman 94% LEAN | 6% FAT Ground Turkey with Use by/freeze/sell by date of 1/3/21, 1/4/21, 1/8/21 and 1/10/21 on the front of the package.
• 1-lb. packages of Plainville Farms Ground White Turkey 93% | 7% Fat with Use by/freeze/sell by date of 1/10/21 on the front of the package.
• The products bear establishment number EST. P-244 inside the USDA mark of inspection. These items were shipped to retail locations nationwide.

Credit: USDA

Credit: USDA

Public health agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is investigating a multi-state outbreak of 28 Salmonella Hadar illnesses in 12 states between Dec. 28, 2020 through March 4, 2021.

"Consumption of food contaminated with Salmonella can cause salmonellosis, one of the most common bacterial foodborne illnesses. The most common symptoms of salmonellosis are diarrhea, abdominal cramps, and fever within 6 hours to 6 days after eating the contaminated product," the FSIS said in a release. "The illness usually lasts 4 to 7 days. Most people recover without treatment. In some persons, however, the diarrhea may be so severe that the patient needs to be hospitalized. Older adults, infants, and persons with weakened immune systems are more likely to develop a severe illness. Individuals concerned about an illness should contact their health care provider."

Consumers with questions about the public health alert can contact Yusef Robb at (323)384-1789 or by email at yusef@tkCommunicationsLLC.com.

Consumers with food safety questions can call the toll-free USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline at 1-888-MPHotline (1-888-674-6854) or live chat via Ask USDA from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. (Eastern Time) Monday through Friday.

Consumers can also browse food safety messages at Ask USDA or send a question via email to MPHotline@usda.gov. For consumers that need to report a problem with a meat, poultry, or egg product, the online Electronic Consumer Complaint Monitoring System can be accessed 24 hours a day at https://foodcomplaint.fsis.usda.gov/eCCF/.