CDC : Costco Chicken Salad Linked To E. Coli Outbreak In 7 States

(RTTNews) - The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Tuesday that at least 19 people in seven states have been infected by E. coli after eating rotisserie chicken salad sold at Costco Wholesale Corp (COST).

The outbreak has sent five people to the hospital, with two developing hemolytic uremic syndrome, a type of kidney failure. There have been no deaths reported, the CDC said.

The people who fell ill lived in California, Colorado, Missouri, Montana, Utah, Virginia and Washington.

The agency said the epidemiologic evidence available at this time suggests that rotisserie chicken salad made and sold in Costco Wholesale stores in several states is a likely source of this outbreak.

The CDC noted that the ongoing investigation has not identified what specific ingredient in the chicken salad is linked to illness. Fourteen (88%) of 16 people purchased or ate rotisserie chicken salad from Costco.

On Friday, Costco reported to public health officials that the company had removed all remaining rotisserie chicken salad from all stores in the U.S. and stopped further production of the product until further notice.

The CDC advised that consumers who purchased rotisserie chicken salad from any Costco store in the United States on or before November 20, 2015, should not eat it and should throw it away.