Costco's Rotisserie Chicken Salad Linked to E. Coli Outbreak

Rotisserie chicken salad sold at Costco Wholesale Corp. is a "likely source" of an E. coli outbreak, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday.

As of Monday, infections of 19 people had been reported, with the majority in the western U.S., the CDC said. The agency said five people were hospitalized and two developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, a type of kidney failure.

Costco's vice president responsible for food safety wasn't immediately available for comment late Tuesday.

Another recent E. coli outbreak, linked to Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc., widened from the Pacific Northwest to other states, the CDC said Friday. The CDC said 45 people have become ill from the E. coli strain linked to Chipotle. Chipotle said it has conducted deep cleaning at the restaurants that have been linked to the incident, replaced ingredients in those restaurants and changed food-preparation procedures.

The Costco product being investigated is labeled "Chicken Salad made with Rotisserie Chicken" with item number 37719, the CDC said.

Costco told public health officials on Friday that it removed all remaining rotisserie chicken salad from stores and stopped further production of the item, the CDC said.

Costco, the second-largest U.S. retailer behind Wal-Mart Stores Inc., said on Nov. 4 that sales at established stores fell 1% in October, as total sales rose 1% to $8.78 billion. Costco operates 690 warehouses, including 482 in the U.S. and Puerto Rico.

Write to Josh Beckerman at [e-mail]

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November 24, 2015 21:05 ET (02:05 GMT)

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