Wisconsinites Recently Affected by a Series of Foodborne Illnesses

Tuesday, November 5th, 2024 -- 10:00 AM

(Hope Kirwan, Wisconsin Public Radio) Wisconsinites have been affected by a series of foodborne illnesses over the last two months, including a newly confirmed outbreak of E. coli linked to McDonald’s hamburgers.

According to Hope Kirwan with Wisconsin Public Radio, on Oct. 22, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed one Wisconsinite has been affected by the ongoing outbreak that is likely caused by onions served on Quarter Pounder hamburgers.

The food was sold at McDonald’s restaurants primarily in western states like Colorado, but also in Iowa and Missouri. In September, eggs from a Wisconsin producer led to 93 cases of salmonella infections across the United States.

More than half of the cases were in Wisconsin, and the outbreak led to 34 hospitalizations across the country. Earlier this month, hundreds of retail stores in Wisconsin, including Walmart, Pick ‘n Save and Dollar General, were affected by a recall for ready-to-eat meats that may have been contaminated with listeria.

There have been no reported cases of illness from the recalled products, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. At least one Wisconsinite was sickened by a separate Listeria outbreak from Boar’s Head deli meats in June and July.

While the different outbreaks have come in rapid succession, the number of illnesses being reported isn’t out of the ordinary, according to Kathleen Glass, associate director of the Food Research Institute at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

“It just happens to be the luck of the draw that we’re seeing it in Wisconsin,” Glass said. “They are also very high profile because they have affected a number of people.”

She said raw foods, like the onions and eggs in recent recalls, carry a higher risk of contamination. That’s because processors can’t rely on heat to kill contaminants that are found in the environment where food is produced.

“Animals are not sterile; plants are not sterile,” she said. “When (a company is) processing, they can do the peeling and the washing and the disinfecting, but because they have such a large quantity of foods, they’re going through a lot, there is always that potential for cross contamination.”

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