Days after Chipotle Mexican Grill decided to close its restaurants in Washington and Oregon due to an E. coli scare, another big chain in the region is facing accusations of being part of the recent outbreak, particularly with one of their fairly popular products: the Costco chicken salad.
After authorities linked the Costco chicken salad to at least one case of E. coli in the Washington region, the retailer has promptly taken the product off shelves as it collaborates to find the ultimate cause of contamination, avoiding any future issues with food safety in the area.
According to King5, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as well as other western states are working together to investigate the latest E. coli outbreak, after a few other people have become sick with the bacteria after purchasing the Costco chicken salad in the late days of October.
Food Safety News reports that Washington isn't the only state where the Costco chicken salad has posed contagion problems with this bacteria, as there have also been reported cases of the illness in Colorado (four cases), Utah and Montana.
For now, authorities from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service and the CDC are working alongside the retailer to determine the source of contamination in the Costco chicken salad, as the product has been removed from shelves and is currently unavailable for sales in the aforementioned states.
The Colorado government issued a press release on the subject, stating that the contaminated product is "Chicken Salad made with Rotisserie Chicken," item number 37719, and those who had purchased it ahead of it being pulled from shelves should discard it, though no recall has been issued so far.
If you've eaten this Costco chicken salad in the past few weeks and are experiencing symptoms like diarrhea and abdominal cramps, make sure to see your doctor.
