The E. Coli Carrot Outbreak Has Gotten Bigger

Carrot-lovers beware: there’s still a chance your chilled vegetables could contain dangerous E. coli bacteria. The list of potentially tainted organic carrot products has expanded in recent days and now includes carrots recently sold at Whole Foods.

Federal health officials last weekend announced the outbreak, which has affected people across 18 states so far. The cases have been traced to organic carrots sourced from one specific supplier, Grimmway Farms. In the wake of the announcement, Grimmway Farms recalled dozens of its whole and baby carrot products, either sold by the company directly or under various brand names at many different locations, including Wegmans and Trader Joe’s. This week, the list of products recalled by the company and others has expanded.

On Wednesday, Grimmway Farms extended the list of its recalled products to cover additional bag sizes. The companies Fabalish Inc and F&S Fresh Foods also issued their own recalls of several products, which may contain tainted carrots supplied by Grimmway. The specific products recalled by F&S Fresh Foods are sold under the Whole Foods brand: Whole Foods Market 15 oz. Organic Carrot Sticks and Whole Foods Market 15 oz. Organic Carrots & Celery. A full list of the recalled products can be seen here.

As of November 22, at least 39 people have gotten sick with E. coli from this outbreak, with 15 people hospitalized and one dead as a result. The E. coli strain behind this outbreak, known as O121:H19, produces toxins that raise the risk of severe, life-threatening complications like hemolytic–uremic syndrome (HUS), which can cause major damage to the kidneys and other organs. It’s likely that many more people have been sickened than reported, since most people who catch E. coli and other foodborne diseases do not seek medical attention.

While the affected products were sold nationwide, the risk to carrot-buying customers today is probably now minimal. Health officials have said that any tainted products are likely no longer being sold in stores. But it is still possible that people could contract E. coli from contaminated carrots that have been kept in fridges and refrigerators. Depending on the storage method, raw carrots can last up to a month without going bad, so the risk of further cases is certainly real. Officials are warning the public to check their homes and make sure they’re not holding on to any recalled carrots.

“If you have these products in your home, do not eat or use them, throw them away, and clean and sanitize surfaces they touched. If you purchased organic whole or baby carrots and stored them without the original packaging and don’t know what brand they are, you should not eat them and should throw them away,” the FDA said in its latest update on the outbreak.

The carrot outbreak comes on the heels of an unrelated outbreak caused by a different toxin-producing E. coli strain that contaminated onions used on McDonald’s Quarter Pounders. While that outbreak has run its course, following the removal of the tainted onions, the company is still facing lawsuits over the food poisoning.