An outbreak of salmonella linked to raw milk in San Diego has made headlines as three consumers are hospitalized this week. At the same time, an outbreak of E. coli from a Mexican-style food restaurant , Miguel’s Cocina (also in San Diego), has hospitalized 7 and sickened at least 17 in San Diego. And finally, Gill Onions, produced and harvested in Oxnard, California, north of Los Angles, have sicked 73 people in 22 states.
The Raw Milk: Salmonella
The raw milk producer is out of Fresno California, says County of San Diego health officials who have identified the victims in this outbreak. Raw milk is inherently dangerous, says food poisoning Dr. Anthony Coveny. Coveny, who is an attorney with Ron Simon, the national food safety law firm that filed multiple lawsuits in the Miguel’s E. coli outbreak this week, says “drinking raw milk is inherently dangerous because it routinely tests positive for listeria, salmonella, campylobacter, and e. coli. That is why we pasteurize milk products, to reduce the risk of food borne illness.”
Raw milk is so dangerous, in fact, that most states ban the sale or highly regulate/limit who can purchase it and where. Many milk products are also at high risk if there is a failure to pasteurize the milk prior to production.
The Mexican Restaurant: E. coli
As noted above, at least two Miguel’s Cocina E. coli lawsuits have now been filed, both by Ron Simon & Associates, the national food safety law firm, in the outbreak of E. coli from consuming food at Miguel’s Cocina between October 6th and 18th. Miguel’s Cocina remains closed as an investigation into the restaurant remains ongoing. The duration and variety of foods consumed has made it difficult to determine the source of the E. Coli as of yet.
The Onion Salmonella Outbreak:
And now Gills Onions are at the heart of an outbreak of salmonella caused by consuming bagged, precut onions. The outbreak, which is still being investigated, has sickened at least 73 people in 22 states, including 15 who were hospitalized. Ron Simon, who has filed many onion salmonella lawsuits, stated:
“Gills Onions may be facing a very different set of concerns than Prosource, Keller Farms, or Thomson. In the Gills Onion cases, the product was highly manufactured, and does not represent merely the sale of a contaminated product. The more ”hands on” the production, greater number of opportunities to introduce salmonella, and the more care is needed to prevent that for happening.”
