An additional 14,093 units of rotisserie chicken were added to a recall issued by Costco's El Camino Real store in South San Francisco, Calif., the US Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service reported. The products may be contaminated with a strain of Salmonella.
The products were sold directly to consumers between Sept. 24 and Oct. 15, the agency said. The products may be contaminated with Salmonella Heidelberg. The products subject to recall are include 13,455 “Kirkland Signature Foster Farms” rotisserie chickens and 638 total units of “Kirkland Farm” rotisserie chicken soup, rotisserie chicken leg quarters and rotisserie chicken salad. No illnesses have been reported in connection to the products in this latest recall, FSIS said. A follow-up investigation by Costco and the California Department of Public Health revealed that additional product should be recalled.
The initial recall was implemented on Oct. 12 on concerns that a group of Salmonella Heidelberg illnesses were associated with the consumption of rotisserie chicken products prepared in and purchased at the Costco El Camino Real store. Epidemiologic and traceback investigations uncovered a link between the Costco El Camino Real rotisserie chicken products and the outbreak, according to FSIS. The group of illnesses related to the rotisserie chicken is part of a larger cluster of multi-drug resistant Salmonella Heidelberg infections, according to FSIS.
The agency said the problem may be the result of cross-contamination in the preparation area after the chicken was cooked. FSIS is working with the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and public health authorities in California and Costco on the investigation.
