The Washington Post

…”At least 230 people in 44 states and the District have fallen ill from the (salami-linked salmonella) outbreak and about 26 percent have been hospitalized. No deaths have been reported but salmonella illness can be fatal for the very young, the elderly and those with compromised immune systems.

“The ongoing outbreak of Salmonella illness began in July, but it was six months before state and federal health officials were able to tie it to ready-to-eat Italian-style sausages made by Daniele. Federal and state investigators detected salmonella in several open containers of black pepper in the Rhode Island company’s facilities, triggering a recall last month of 1.2 million pounds of salami coated in black pepper. The recall was expanded to include 23,754 more pounds of Daniele products Feb. 4.”

Source: Washington Post, February 18, 2010