The J.M. Smucker Company announced Friday it is recalling nearly 50 different Jif peanut butter products “due to potential Salmonella contamination.”
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said in a press release that it is investigating a Salmonella Senftenberg infection outbreak in 12 states that the FDA says is “linked to certain Jif peanut butter products produced at the J.M. Smucker Company facility in Lexington, Kentucky.” The investigation is in partnership with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and local and state authorities.
Fourteen cases of infection have been documented in the outbreak in Arkansas, Georgia, Massachusetts, Missouri, Ohio, New York, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, and Washington, the FDA said. Two patients were hospitalized, and no deaths have been reported.
“CDC’s review of epidemiological information indicates that five out of five people reported consuming peanut butter and four of the five people specifically reported consuming different varieties of Jif brand peanut butter prior to becoming ill,” the FDA said in its release.
The J.M. Smucker Company said the potentially contaminated Jif products were “distributed nationwide. Products “that have the lot code numbers between 1274425 – 2140425, only if the first seven digits end with 425” are subject to the voluntary recall, the FDA said. The lot code can be found beside the best if used by date on the Jif products, and the J.M. Smucker Company stated any of these products should immediately be thrown out. The list of the nearly 50 products being recalled can be found here.
“Consumers, restaurants, and retailers should not eat, sell, or serve any recalled Jif brand peanut butter,” the FDA said, adding that consumer should check their peanut butter at home as the products have a two-year shelf life.
Salmonella can cause salmonellosis, a gastrointestinal illness in which most patients experience fevers, diarrhea, and abdominal cramps, the FDA noted. More severe cases can include “high fever, aches, headaches, lethargy, a rash, blood in the urine or stool, and in some cases may become fatal.”
Elderly individuals, children, and those who have compromised immune systems are more susceptible to the illness, the agency said.
Anyone who has consumed one of the recalled products and is experiencing symptoms of salmonellosis should contact their doctor, the FDA. Additionally, those who “have used” one of the products “should wash and sanitize surfaces and utensils that could have touched the peanut butter.”