US healthcare officials recently said a food-poisoning outbreak tied to alfalfa sprouts and involving multiple germs had sickened people in at least 15 states.
Officials announced the outbreak after documenting more than three dozen cases in Minnesota and Wisconsin. On Friday, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said the agency was aware of at least 55 cases nationally, including four people who had been hospitalized.
The CDC said cases were also reported in Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, South Carolina, North Dakota, South Dakota and Washington.
Of 34 sick people interviewed, 26 reported eating alfalfa sprouts, according to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Food poisoning outbreaks tend to be defined by one type of germ, but this outbreak involves people with salmonella and different strains of E coli.
Shiga toxin-producing E coli – or Stec – can cause stomach cramps and bloody diarrhea. Infections can lead to a severe complication that involves acute kidney failure.
Salmonella poisoning can cause diarrhea, fever, severe vomiting, dehydration and stomach cramps.
Officials linked cases to alfalfa sprouts produced by Everything Sprouts, a Minnesota grower, and sold under the Calco and Everything Sprouts brands to restaurants and grocery stores. The company has responded with a voluntary recall of certain lots of alfalfa sprouts.
An Everything Sprouts statement said it had conducted daily tests since the outbreak began and had “not received any positive lab results”.
“To date, no reports of illnesses involving Everyday Sprouts Alfalfa Sprouts have been reported to the company,” the company said.
In June 2025, the FDA sent a warning letter to Everything Sprouts, saying inspections the year before identified several points of concern, including a leaking roof that was dropping water on to bean sprouts and workers’ smocks.
The Associated Press contributed reporting
