CDC Says E. coli Outbreak May be Linked to Flour Made by General Mills
June 01 2016 - 6:30PM
Dow Jones News
By Jesse Newman
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Wednesday said
officials are investigating an outbreak of E.coli likely caused by
flour made by General Mills Inc. at a Kansas City, Mo. plant.
The E.coli strain -- called E.coli 0121 -- has spread across 20
states, sickening 38 people between December 21, 2015 and May 3,
2016, according to the CDC. Ten people have been hospitalized.
The CDC said its investigation suggests a likely source of the
outbreak was flour produced at General Mills' plant in Kansas
City.
On Tuesday, the Minneapolis cereal company announced it was
voluntarily recalling over 10 million pounds of flour as a
precaution. The company said it had not been contacted directly by
consumers reporting a confirmed illness tied to its products.
On Wednesday, the company said "The flour that is being
voluntarily recalled was primarily produced at the General Mills
plant in Kansas City, Missouri. To date, E. coliO121 hasn't been
found in any General Mills flour products or in the manufacturing
facility."
General Mills said it was recalling several lots of its Gold
Medal, Wondra and Signature Kitchen brands sold in major
supermarkets like Albertsons Cos., Safeway Inc. and Jewel-Osco.
According to the company, many E. coli strains aren't harmful,
but E. coli O121 is a potentially deadly bacteria that can result
in dehydration and bloody diarrhea. People most at risk include
seniors, young children and people with weakened immune
systems.
Many of the people infected with the outbreak strain of E. coli
had reported making something with flour before becoming ill, with
some reporting they had used a General Mills brand, the company
said.
The CDC on Wednesday said some ill people reported eating or
tasting homemade dough or batter while it was still raw.
"Consumers are reminded to not consume any raw products made
with flour, " General Mills said in Tuesday's release. "Flour is an
ingredient that comes from milling wheat, something grown outdoors
that carries with it risks of bacteria which are rendered harmless
by baking, frying or boiling."
The E. coli outbreak is the most recent in a string of foodborne
illness outbreaks announced this year, including a listeria
outbreak linked to frozen vegetables produced by CRF Frozen Foods
LLC. Earlier this year, health officials declared an apparent end
to two E. coli outbreaks that sickened 60 customers of Chipotle
Mexican Grill Inc., prompting a sharp drop in traffic at the
company's restaurants.
The flour recall also comes after General Mills in October
recalled 1.8 million boxes of Cheerios because wheat flour was
inadvertently added to cereal labeled gluten-free.
Write to Jesse Newman at jesse.newman@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 01, 2016 18:15 ET (22:15 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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