Almost 400 people sickened by recalled onions contaminated with salmonella, including some in Pa.

Thomson International Inc. of Bakersfield, Calif., has recalled its red, yellow, white and sweet yellow onions because they may be contaminated with salmonella.

According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 396 people have been sickened, 59 of them hospitalized, after eating the onions - that number includes two people in Pennsylvania.

Salmonella, according to the FDA, is an organism that cause “serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Healthy persons infected with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. In rare circumstances, infection with Salmonella can result in the organism getting into the bloodstream and producing more severe illnesses such as arterial infections (i.e., infected aneurysms), endocarditis and arthritis.”

The onions were distributed to wholesalers, restaurants and retail stores in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Canada. They were packaged in 5 pound, 10 pound, 25 pound, 40 pound and 50 pound cartons; and 2 pound, 3 pound, 5 pound, 10 pound, 25 pound and 50 pound mesh sacks.

The brand names are Thomson Premium, TLC Thomson International, Tender Loving Care, El Competitor, Hartley’s Best, Onions 52, Majestic, Imperial Fresh, Kroger, Utah Onions and Food Lion.

“Consumers, restaurants, and retailers should not eat, sell, or serve red, white, yellow, or sweet onions from Thomson International, Inc. or products containing such onions. If you cannot tell if your onion is from Thomson International Inc., or your food product contains such onions, you should not eat, sell, or serve it, and should throw it out.”

The states with reported illnesses are:

Alaska, 6; Arizona, 14; California, 49; Colorado, 10; Florida, 3; Idaho, 5; Illinois, 10; Indiana, 2; Iowa, 15; Kansas, 1; Kentucky, 1; Maine, 4; Maryland, 1; Michigan, 23; Minnesota, 10; Missouri, 6; Montana, 33; Nebraska, 5; Nevada, 5; New York, 4; North Carolina, 3; North Dakota, 5; Ohio, 7; Pennsylvania, 2; South Carolina, 1; South Dakota, 11; Tennessee, 5; Texas, 1; Utah, 61; Virginia, 4; Washington, 2; Wisconsin, 5; and Wyoming, 11.

For more information, call Kim Earnshaw at Thomson International at 661-845-1111.

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