FDA looks for source of salmonella that sickened people who ate Aldi peaches

Aldi recalls potentially contaminated peaches from Wawona Packing Co.

If you bought bags of Wawona brand peaches from Aldi since June 1, the FDA says to throw them away.

Peaches sold in plastic bags at Aldi likely made about 70 people sick from salmonella, an outbreak spanning nine states, the FDA says.

The grocery chain recalled loose bulk and packaged peaches from Wawona Packing Co. because of the possible Salmonella Enteritidis contamination.

The fruit was sold in stores and for delivery through Instacart in the Midwest and parts of the Northeast, along with Florida.

Information collected from ill people led the CDC to name the peaches as the likely source of the infections, which include 14 that required hospitalization. The Minnesota Health Department reports that many people sick from the same strain of Salmonella Enteritidis bought Wawona peaches from Aldi.

“FDA’s traceback investigation is ongoing to determine the full scope of product distribution and source of contamination,” the agency’s outbreak announcement says.

The recalled 2-lb. bags of peaches are:

Wawona peaches; UPC 033383322001; sold in Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, Virginia, Wisconsin and West Virginia.
Peaches organic; UPC 849315000400; sold in Connecticut, Illinois, Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, Wisconsin and West Virginia.

Aldi regrets the concern and inconvenience the recall may cause, the company says in its announcement. “ALDI takes the safety and integrity of the products it sells seriously.”

Aldi asks customers to discard any recalled peaches or return them to the store for a refund. If you bought peaches from Aldi since June 1 and don’t know the brand, you should throw them out, the FDA says.

People with recall questions may call Wawona Packing Co. Customer Service at 877-722-7554.

Update: Peaches recalled from stores nationwide, and they reached 14 other countries.

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Rose Shilling is a previous managing editor of Food Engineering Magazine. She wrote feature stories on a variety of topics and tracked the food packaging industry. A journalist with an editing background at news services and newspapers, she also has driven editorial projects in health care and higher education.