Area retailers don't sell vegetables linked to E. coli

Three local food retailers say they have not carried processed celery and onion products recently recalled by the federal Food and Drug Administration, after being traced back to six cases of E.coli in Montana.

Managers at Gary & Leo’s Fresh Foods, Walmart Super Center in Havre and Albertson’s in Harlem say they do not sell the produce ingredients supplied by Taylor Farms Pacific, the company that supplied the processed produce.

In a press release issued Wednesday, the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services said all products containing the diced celery and onions have been taken off store shelves and are no longer for sale. Nonetheless, the department said they want to ensure affected products are not consumed.

“We encourage consumers to check if processed celery products they purchased were recalled,” said Dana Fejes with the Communicable Disease Epidemiology Section of the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services ,. “If anyone consumed the recalled products and and has become ill, we encourage them to consult with their healthcare provider.”

Items affected include packaged salad mixes, celery trays and costco chicken salad. Celery stalks however are not being recalled.

A full list of recalled products can be found at http://fcss.mt.gov.

Meanwhile, The Associated Press reports A Montana woman is suing Costco and Taylor Farms, its California vegetable supplier, because of the E. coli illness she contracted after eating chicken salad she bought at the company’s Bozeman store.

The lawsuit filed was Monday in the Butte division of U.S. District Court by Minneapolis law firm Pritzker Olsen and its associates at Bozeman law firm Beck & Amsden.

Kelsey Lee Thielbahr, a 30-year-old physical therapy assistant from Gallatin County, Montana got sick after eating chicken salad she purchased on Oct. 18 at the Costco in Bozeman.

Costco has identified its supplier, Taylor Farms of California, as the probable source of the E. coli outbreak since it supplied the onion and celery mix in the salad. Tests by FDA have found E. coli on vegetables used in the salad.