7 People Sick With E.Coli Due To Hello Fresh Meal Kits

Many people use meal kits such as Hello Fresh to make dinnertime easier. While these kits can be convenient, they come with the same risks as the food you would buy in the store. This means that some of the ingredients, such as the meat, may contain bacteria.

Seven people have gotten sick with E.coli from the ground beef in Hello Fresh kits. The USDA first reported the outbreak in early September. The victims live in six states: New Jersey, New York, Washington, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. Six of the seven victims have been hospitalized. They range in age from 17 to 69 years old and developed the E-coli infection between June 8 and August 17.

Health officials interviewed six of the seven patients and all six had eaten ground beef from HelloFresh meal kits before becoming sick with infections from E.coli. However, Hello Fresh is not issuing a recall on the ground beef because it is no longer being sold in the meal kits.

It is being investigated to determine if  the ground beef was sold elsewhere besides the Hello Fresh kits. The main concern is that consumers may be storing the affected HelloFresh ground beef in their freezers.

The affected ground beef is described as the following:

• 10-ounce plastic vacuum-packed packages distributed in various HelloFresh meal kits. The beef was labeled “GROUND BEEF 85% LEAN/15% FAT.”
• The affected packages have “EST.46841” marked inside the USDA inspection mark and “EST#46841 L1 22 155” or “EST#46841 L5 22 155” on the side of the package.

While seven victims have been identified so far, it is possible that additional people may have gotten sick from the ground beef because some may not have sought medical treatment. Also, if paperwork and laboratory testing is not yet complete on some patients, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) will not be able to add them to its outbreak tally. Public health investigators are using CDC PulseNet to identify those who are affected by this outbreak.

Effects of E. Coli

Anyone who has eaten the affected ground beef and developed symptoms of E. coli infection should seek medical attention. The symptoms of E. coli infections can vary but often include severe stomach cramps, bloody diarrhea, and fever. Most patients recover in 5-7 days. Others can develop severe or life-threatening symptoms and complications. Up to 10% of those diagnosed with E. coli infections develop hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), which is a potentially life-threatening kidney failure complication. Symptoms of HUS include abdominal pain, fever, fatigue, decrease in urination, and unexplained bruises.

 Contact a New Jersey Personal Injury Lawyer Today

Sometimes the food we eat can make us sick. When this happens, you can sue those involved.

A Morristown product liability attorney from The Law Offices of Michael P. Burakoff can assess your situation and get you the compensation you deserve. Schedule a free consultation by calling (973) 455-1567 or filling out the online form.

Source:

foodsafetynews.com/2022/09/patients-in-outbreak-from-hellofresh-meal-kits-spread-from-washington-to-new-jersey/