State health officials are advising consumers not to eat Banquet brand
and generic store brand frozen not-ready-to-eat pot pies with “P-9”
printed on the side of the package. The pot pies may be the source of
illness due to Salmonella that has caused 19 people in Wisconsin in
twelve counties, ages 3 – 79 years old, to become ill.
Eighteen of the individuals have become sick since August 17th, but one
individual is reporting illness from May. Six of the 19 people have
reported consuming pot pies, five have reported they have not consumed
pot pies, and case histories (what the individuals consumed) are being
collected from the remaining individuals.
Out of the 19 illnesses, eleven of the individuals were 19 years old or
younger. Three people have been hospitalized, but there have been no
deaths. The counties where the cases have occurred include Brown,
Buffalo, Calumet, Fond du Lac, La Crosse, Langlade, Marathon, Milwaukee,
Vernon, Walworth, Waukesha and Winnebago.
The 19 illnesses are linked to a national investigation of Salmonella
cases involving pot pies. USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service
(FSIS) is investigating a Missouri establishment that has voluntarily
ceased operations as of October 9th due to reported illnesses linked to
its products. The FSIS is advising consumers not to eat or to discard
these chicken or turkey pot pie products until it is able to determine
the source, products and potential production dates of contamination and
to verify proper cooking instructions for these not-ready-to-eat
products.
Health officials will continue to monitor for additional cases, so
please watch for Salmonella symptoms, which typically appear 18 to 36
hours after exposure, but can occur as quickly as 12 hours – or as long
as 72 hours – after exposure. People exposed to Salmonella bacteria may
experience mild to severe diarrhea, abdominal pains, fever, and
occasionally vomiting for several days. Bloodstream infections are
infrequent, but can be quite serious, particularly in the very young or
elderly. Most people with Salmonella will recover on their own, but
it’s important to drink fluids to prevent dehydration. If you have
any questions about your symptoms, contact your health care provider.
Salmonella is a bacterium that affects the intestinal tract, but can
rarely affect urine, the bloodstream or other body tissues. It’s
spread by (1) eating or drinking contaminated food or water, or (2) by
direct or indirect contact with fecal material from infected people or
animals.
You can take precautions below to help protect yourself against
Salmonella:
● Always wash your hands, utensils, cutting boards and counters with
hot soapy water before and after food preparation – especially after
preparing meat, poultry, eggs or seafood.
● Parents should stress proper hand washing habits to their children.
If you are unable to wash your hands with soap and water, use an alcohol
hand sanitizer.
● Keep raw meat, poultry, eggs and seafood and their juices away from
ready-to-eat foods. Never place cooked food on an unwashed plate that
previously held raw meat, poultry, eggs or seafood.
● Refrigerate or freeze food and leftovers within two hours.
● Place meats on the bottom shelf to prevent blood from dripping onto
other foods.
● Avoid eating raw or undercooked meats.
● Avoid drinking unpasteurized (raw) milk or fruit juices (e.g.,
apple juice or apple cider).
For more about Salmonella, go to:
http://dhfs.wisconsin.gov/communicable/factsheets/Salmonellosis.htm
To view the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service website, go to
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/
