CDC warns against eating pasta salad that has sickened 21

Product was sold in 244 Hy-Vee grocery stores in eight states

Now it’s a certain pasta salad that consumers shouldn’t be eating.

Consumers should avoid a spring pasta salad sold in 244 of Hy-Vee grocery stores in Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Minnesota and Wisconsin, according to federal health officials. Of the 21 people who have been sickened thus far by salmonella infections linked to the salad, five have been hospitalized. No deaths have been reported.

Salmonella infection is a common bacterial infection that can cause diarrhea, fever and stomach cramps in people 12 to 72 hours after exposure. The illness usually lasts four to seven days, and most people recover without treatment. In some instances, the diarrhea can be so serious that the patient needs to be hospitalized. Children and older adults and people with weak immune systems are more likely to develop serious illness.

The company recalled its spring pasta salad on Tuesday. It was sold in one-pound and three-pound plastic containers or may have been scooped at the deli counter into clear plastic containers, according to a food safety alert issued Wednesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The expiration date range is between June 22 and Aug. 3, 2018.

Even if the salad was eaten and no one got sick, the CDC is urging consumers to throw any leftovers out. If consumers stored the recalled pasta salad in another container, they should throw the pasta salad and thoroughly wash the container with warm, soapy water before using it again, to remove harmful germs that could contaminate other food.

The salad includes shell pasta, carrots, celery, cucumbers, green pepper, onion and mayonnaise.