Mexico investigates possible presence of bacteria in onions in the country after salmonella outbreak in the United States
Mexican onion.
Photo: PEDRO PARDO / AFP / Getty Images
The Mexican authorities reported that they are investigating the possible presence of Salmonella Oranienburg in fresh Mexican onions after a outbreak of infections in the United States.
In a statement, the Secretariat of Agriculture and Rural Development (Sader), through the National Service of Agrifood Health, Safety and Quality (Senasica), said that he opened an investigation into the possible presence of the bacteria in the aforementioned food.
He added that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) from the United States reported that investigate the company ProSource Inc., of Hailey, Idaho, “which recalled onions from the US market red, yellow and white, as a precautionary measure and on a voluntary basis, while the investigation concludes ”.
He explained that the company, also known as ProSource Produce, LLC, “is supplied by production units in Chihuahua”, northern Mexico, so the Ministry of Agriculture, through the Senasica, opened an investigation in that entity.
The Senasica, Sader said, carries out the samplings to have the technical and scientific elements that allow “to confirm or rule out the presence of the pathogen associated with onion cultivation in the state ”.
In addition, he pointed out that he is waiting for the US health authority to share the genomic sequence of the pathogen, in order to compare it with those existing in Mexico.
Meanwhile, Agriculture of Mexico highlighted that the sequencing and bioinformatics area of ​​the Senasica National Reference Center for Pesticides and Contaminants reported that, “so far, none of your daily investigations have yielded results confirming the presence of Salmonella Oranienburg in fresh Mexican onions ”.
Alert was issued
On Wednesday, US health authorities warned of an outbreak of salmonellosis that has affected more than 650 people in 37 states across the country, linked to the consumption of onions imported from Chihuahua, Mexico.
The CDC alert detailed that as of Wednesday 652 sick people had been reported, of which 129 have been hospitalized.
The CDC specified that, although so far there have been no deaths Among those infected with the “Salmonella oranienburg” bacteria, the consumption of certain onions imported from Mexico should be avoided.
The agency advised consumers who have whole unlabeled red, white, or yellow onions at home to do not eat them and throw them away.
“People should not eat (these onions) and companies should not sell or serve whole onions that were imported from Chihuahua, Mexico, and distributed by ProSource Inc,” he said. Salmonellosis pIt can cause fever, vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal pain, although in some cases can lead to a serious infection which can spread from the intestines to the bloodstream and from there to other parts of the body, and it can be fatal if it is not treated in time with antibiotics.
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