Here’s What’s Causing The Salmonella Outbreak Affecting Illinois

The ongoing Salmonella outbreak that's been concerning to Illinois residents and the entire country has grown from 592 infections to 652, and has added another state reporting infections, making it now 37 states being affected.

Illinois is also reporting 37 Salmonella infections, up from 34 three days ago. The one bit of good news is that it looks like the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has gotten to the bottom of where this Salmonella Oranienburg outbreak is coming from.

This Current Outbreak Seems To Be Centered Around Imported Produce

To be more specific, the CDC thinks that it's coming from white, yellow, and red onions imported from Mexico by a company named Pro Source Inc.

The CDC says that the onions were imported from Chihuahua, Mexico and were then distributed to stores and restaurants throughout the United States. Pro Source Inc says that the onions were imported in late August (August 27th). Even though that was over a month ago, onions have a pretty long shelf life and these onions may still be on store's shelves and in people's homes.

If You've Got Onions At Home Right Now, Here's What To Do

If your inner voice just said "Don't eat them," you're absolutely correct. The onions you have may not be the Salmonella-contaminated ones, but unless you still have the packaging there's just no way to tell for sure.

Here's the guidance on this from the CDC:

• Do not buy or eat any whole fresh red, white, or yellow onions if they were imported from Chihuahua, Mexico and distributed by ProSource Inc.
• Throw away any whole red, white, or yellow onions you have at home that do not have a sticker or packaging
• These onions may have stickers or packaging indicating the brand (ProSource Inc.) and the country (Mexico) where they were grown.
• If you can’t tell where the onions are from, don’t buy or eat them
• Wash surfaces and containers these onions may have touched using hot soapy water or a dishwasher

Click here to read the full report from the CDC.