Infection hazard

At least 68 people, including 18 who needed to be treated at hospitals, have fallen ill across 19 states, including Hawaii, in a salmonella outbreak that might be linked to cucumbers, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday.
Federal officials announced they were investigating the outbreak believed to be tied to cucumbers grown by Agrotato, S.A. de C.V. in Sonora, Mexico, and sold by SunFed Produce, which is based in Arizona, and other importers. No deaths have been reported.
The CDC said it was working with public health and regulatory officials in several states, including the Food and Drug Administration, to investigate the infections.
The cucumbers were sold in the United States and Canada, according to the FDA.
SunFed recalled all sizes of the product described as “whole fresh American cucumbers.”
Craig Slate, president of SunFed, said in a statement that the company “immediately acted to protect consumers.”
“We are working closely with authorities and the implicated ranch to determine the possible cause,” he said.
The recalled cucumbers were sold in more than half the states between Oct. 12 and Nov. 26, according to SunFed, and they were shipped to the following states: Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
The CDC advised consumers to look for a sticker that shows “SunFed Mexico” as the place where the cucumbers were grown and to throw away or return any recalled cucumbers. The agency also advised consumers to throw out any cucumbers bought between Oct. 12 and Nov. 26 if they do not know where they were grown.