Wisconsin Recalls Bagged Spinach

Staff Writer, May 7, 2009

The state of Wisconsin has recently issued a product recall for the Kleen-pak brand of bagged fresh spinach. The business is based in Milwaukee, and the bags were mainly distributed throughout southern and southeastern Wisconsin, but were also found to be in parts of Illinois. A routine food safety test revealed that several samples of the spinach, which is packaged in a 10-ounce plastic bag, tested positive for salmonella.

However, no reported cases of illness have been received by the Food and Drug Administration, to date. As a precaution, consumers should throw away any packages of the spinach with the “use by dates” of April 29, April 30 and May 1. They may also return packages to the store where they were purchased for a full refund.

Though this discovery is not linked to that of salmonella in peanut butter products or pistachios earlier this year, consumers are warned to watch out for signs of a salmonella infection. These symptoms include diarrhea, fever and abdominal pains. These typically occur between 12 and 72 hours after infection. Most individuals recover fully, without medical attention, after four to seven days. Those with weakened immune systems, including the elderly and young children should use extra caution.