The Pennsylvania Department of Health today is emphasizing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) advisory for consumers not to eat Banquet brand and store brand frozen, not-ready-to-eat pot pie products due to possible Salmonella contamination.
"Federal officials have already shared information about the possible contamination, but we want to ensure Pennsylvanians are taking the appropriate measures to protect their health since we are aware of 13 related cases in our state," said state Health Secretary Dr. Calvin B. Johnson. "We urge anyone who has purchased these products to discard them."
All Banquet and store brand pot pie products related to this announcement will have the plant code "P9" on the side of the package. They were manufactured at a ConAgra Foods facility in Missouri, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The frozen pot pies are sold by grocery stores and other retailers nationwide.
Since the beginning of 2007, at least 139 illnesses caused by a strain of Salmonella with a specific "DNA fingerprint" pattern have been identified throughout the United States, prompting a multi-state disease investigation. No deaths have been reported.
A total of 13 of the investigated cases are in Pennsylvania. The average age of the ill individuals in Pennsylvania is 21 years, with the youngest five months and the oldest 86 years; five are less than three years old. Four of these individuals were hospitalized, but all have recovered. The cases are located in the following counties: Berks (2), Bucks, Cambria, Delaware (2), Indiana, Jefferson, Lancaster, Northampton, Philadelphia (2) and Schuylkill.