According to a California Department of Public Health release on Friday December 12th to date 63 confirmed cases of Salmonella Enteritidis (SE) have been diagnosed with 13 hospitalizations. Traceback has identified Vega Farms of Dixon, CA as the source. Cage-free brown eggs in 12 and 30 packs have been recalled. Affected product bears the plant number 2136 and Julian date 328. This would not appear to be a one-day event. Implicated eggs have been sold in a number of stores and delivered to area restaurants.
A spokesperson for Vega Farms confirmed the 1,500-dozen egg recall and stated, “The contamination might have come from their processing equipment.” This is nonsense since supply flocks are responsible for introduction of infection that is both within and outside shells. Contaminated grading equipment could in theory disseminate infection but would be limited to the shell surface.
A further note of confusion was created by station KCRA, Channel 3 that quoted Jason Chapman General Manager at Taylor’s Market who stated that “The eggs didn’t smell right, and they didn’t cook right.” This suggests a quality or age problem. His statement “Working in the grocery business we recognize the signs of Salmonella” is misinformed nonsense. There are no detectable organoleptic changes in eggs contaminated with SE.
It would be interesting to learn the results of drag swab and environmental testing on all flocks supplying P2136, the Vega Farms SE vaccination program and the level of biosecurity applied. It is understood that California Department of Food and Agriculture has conducted appropriate sampling at the farm and plant. There may be a learning opportunity here.