CDC Issues Stern Kellogg's Cereal Warning As Salmonella Outbreak Grows

The CDC is back with a stern warning regarding Kellogg's Honey Smacks breakfast cereal: no store should be selling it and no consumer should be eating it. The warning specifies all boxes of the Honey Smacks cereal, the advisory following a multi-state salmonella outbreak involving thirty more individuals who became ill after eating the food. According to the CDC, some stores are still selling the product.

Earlier this year, the CDC issued a warning alongside the FDA stating that a salmonella outbreak had been linked to Kellogg's Honey Smacks cereal. The product was recalled, stores were advised to stop selling the product, and consumers were told to avoid eating the substance. By June 14, the CDC said 73 people had contracted salmonella across 31 states.

Unfortunately, another 27 people were added to the illness list by July 12 when the CDC updated the outbreak's status. At that point, the agency had tracked the start of the illness back to March 2 in the US, with impacted individuals ranging from toddler to 95-years-old.

Of 65 patients who were interviewed, 85-percent had reported eating cold cereal and 43 people specifically mentioned Kellogg's Honey Smacks. Subsequent testing found salmonella in an unopened box of the cereal, prompting a warning that none of the cereal should be consumed due to the long shelf life and the potential for contamination.

By August 30, a total of 130 individuals had contracted the disease. Now, less than a week later, the CDC had published yet another update, this time warning that another 30 people are ill after eating the breakfast cereal.

"CDC continues to recommend consumers not eat any Kellogg's Honey Smacks cereal. People who recently became ill report eating Kellogg's Honey Smacks cereal that they had in their homes," the CDC says. "The FDA has come aware that recalled Kellogg's Honey Smacks cereal is still being offered for sale."

The FDA has a page detailing the cereal's recall.

SOURCE: CDC