Key Facts:
- 20 sick in California, Tennessee, Florida and Maryland
- Salmonella serotypes: Chester, Duisburg, Typhimurium, and Urbana
- Five people were hospitalized, and no deaths were reported
In April 2021, CDC, public health and regulatory officials in several states, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) began collecting different types of data to investigate a multistate outbreak of Salmonella infections.
Epidemiologic, laboratory, and traceback data showed that Jule’s cashew brie was contaminated with Salmonella and made people sick.
As of July 7, 2021, this outbreak is over.
This outbreak included people infected with one of four Salmonella serotypes: Chester, Duisburg, Typhimurium, and Urbana.
A total of 20 sick people were reported from four states – California, Tennessee, Florida and Maryland. Illnesses started on dates ranging from December 11, 2020, to May 9, 2021.
Sick people ranged in age from 1 to 72 years, with a median age of 26 years, and 65% were female. Five people were hospitalized, and no deaths were reported.
State and local public health officials interviewed people about the foods they ate in the week before they got sick, and 15 (79%) reported eating Jule’s cashew brie – the only common product identified.
Officials from California and Tennessee collected samples of Jule’s cashew brie for testing. WGS results showed that samples of Jule’s truffle cashew brie collected in both states were contaminated with Salmonella. California officials found the outbreak strains of Salmonella Chester and Urbana in the brie, and Tennessee officials found the outbreak strain of Salmonella Urbana.
FDA and California Department of Public Health inspectors conducted an inspection at Jule’s Foods. FDA collected food and environmental samples from the facility and found the outbreak strain of Salmonella Urbana in samples of raw cashews. These raw cashews were from the same lot of cashews used to make the recalled brie. Other strains of Salmonella were found in the food and environmental samples, but these strains were not linked to any illnesses.
Marler Clark, The Food Safety Law Firm, is the nation’s leading law firm representing victims of Salmonella outbreaks. The Salmonella lawyers of Marler Clarkhave represented thousands of victims of Salmonella and other foodborne illness outbreaks and have recovered over $800 million for clients. Marler Clark is the only law firm in the nation with a practice focused exclusively on foodborne illness litigation. Our Salmonella lawyers have litigated Salmonella cases stemming from outbreaks traced to a variety of foods, such as cantaloupe, tomatoes, ground turkey, salami, sprouts, cereal, peanut butter, and food served in restaurants. The law firm has brought Salmonella lawsuits against such companies as Cargill, ConAgra, Peanut Corporation of America, Sheetz, Taco Bell, Subway and Wal-Mart.
If you or a family member became ill with a Salmonella infection, including Reactive Arthritis or Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), after consuming food and you’re interested in pursuing a legal claim, contact the Marler Clark Salmonella attorneys for a free case evaluation.