Despite 312 people left sick with salmonella around the nation, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has opted to not shut down Foster Farms facilities in California which caused the outbreak, nor issue a recall from potentially tainted products.
The Livingston, CA-based company, which has typically produced good-quality poultry products, has made "immediate substantive changes to their slaughter and processing to allow for continued operations," the department said in a statement.
In a statement, Foster Farms CEO Ron Foster said "we have worked relentlessly to address these issues and will continue to do so as we work to regain consumer trust and confidence in the Foster Farms brand."
Despite promises to make changes, the number of those left ill in the national outbreak of salmonella linked to raw chicken rose to 317 Friday, health officials reported. The bulk of those left sick from Foster Farm's chicken, 73 percent of them were from California. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, illnesses have been reported in 20 states and Puerto Rico. The chicken in question can be identified in supermarkets with USDA marks of inspection P6137, P6137A or P7632.
Following reports of the first cases of salmonella, the USDA did threaten to shut down Foster Farms last week. This would have affect two plants the company has in Fresno and another in Livingston, Calif.
That threat was lifted Thursday after Foster Farms met a deadline to show plans to improve conditions in the three problem plants. The USDA only cautioned consumers to ensure the poultry is cooked to a minimum of 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
This is not the first time that Foster Farm's has landed in hot water. The company was previously linked to another salmonella outbreak - 134 illnesses in 13 states - in July, the CDC Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported.
