SA Health has today ordered a local mung bean sprout producer Star Tu, to recall all of its products and stop selling immediately after Salmonella Saintpaul samples were found in packaged bean sprouts.
Chief Public Health Officer, Professor Paddy Phillips is advising South Australians to either throw out their bean sprouts or return them to the place of purchase.
A packager of Star Tu products, Sunshine Sprouts, has also been ordered by SA Health to stop selling on any products containing Star Tu mung bean sprouts.
Since the start of December, 2015 there have been a total of 271 cases of confirmed Salmonella Saintpaul notified to SA Health of which 47 have ended in hospitalisation. South Australia usually sees around 15-20 cases each year.
In March 2016 SA Health issued a public health warning to South Australians not to eat raw bean sprouts while investigations took place. Through the course of intensive investigations, Salmonella Saintpaul was detected in a piece of equipment at the Star Tu factory.
South Australians are requested to either throw out their bean sprouts or return them to their place of purchase as there’s an urgent recall on ALL products that have come from this factory.
Products recalled include:
- Star Tu, Chinese Bean Sprouts, all use by dates. Product sold in plastic bags all sizes, including 350g, 1kg and 5kg. Also sold to consumers loose.
- Sunshine Sprouts, Bean Sprouts, 125g plastic tub, all use by dates. These products have been available at retailers such as major and small supermarkets, small grocers, as well as fruit and vegetable grocers. They have also been used by food service businesses, such as restaurants and cafes
