Nationwide Salmonella Outbreak Hits Illinois

By Soyoung Kwak in News on Apr 7, 2012 7:00PM

A salmonella outbreak has popped up in several different states across the country, and Illinois is one of them. This isn't Illinois' first time at the salmonella rodeo - there have been a couple of fairly recent instances when Chicago and surrounding areas suffered salmonella outbreaks. This time, the scale and scope of the outbreak is a bit larger, as more than 100 people in America have been sick, (including nine in Illinois) which makes the foodborne illness a serious matter.

What's the cause of the salmonella outbreak? We'll give you a couple of hints: it's not pink slime or sandwiches. Raw seafood is to blame, but a specific source of the salmonella has not been pinpointed: "Those struck by the illness said they had eaten sushi, sashimi or similar foods in the week before their symptoms began, according to the CDC."

On top of it all, the salmonella outbreak is actually kind of weird, as it is caused by a pretty "unusual strain" of salmonella, salmonella bareilly. Hopefully, it's not some freak strain that could cause real serious global meltdown, because that would be absolutely terrifying.