Egg Facilities of "Habitual Violator" DeCoster Plagued With Salmonella for 2 Years
Facilities at Iowa's Wright County Egg, the apparent origin of the recent egg-borne salmonella outbreak, tested positive for the disease-causing bacteria, Salmonella enteritidis, at least as far back as 2 years ago. The revelation is made in a letter sent Tuesday by Congressmen Henry Waxman and Bart Stupak, chairmen of the House Investigations and Oversight Subcommittee, to Austin "Jack" DeCoster, CEO of Wright County Egg. Waxman and Stupak cite 28 sample reports, obtained by unclear means,* that reveal at least 73 instances in which Salmonella serogroup D was detected on chickens, egg belts, or "pit rows" in DeCoster's hen houses. The most recent sample report, dated July 26, 2010, revealed that DeCoster's poultry tested positive for serogroup D and ultimately S. enteritidis.**
The publicized testing records, which are incomplete and heavily redacted, show more than 400 instances in which environmental swabs (ie, "sponges") at DeCoster's egg farms were contaminated with various serogroups of Salmonella—B, CI, C2, D, "untypeable," and polyvalent. Isolates revealing serogroups D, untypeable, and polyvalent, detected on samples by the Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory at Iowa State University (which were presumably taken as a part of routine surveillance testing performed by the company), were then forwarded for species identification to the NVSL, or the National Veterinary Services Laboratory. However, only about half, or 10, of these NVSL results are included in the publicized testing records. Of the available NVSL reports, 8 (80%) revealed S. enteritidis. (The NVSL is a part of the USDA—a fact that raises questions about the government lab's responsibility for further scrutinizing facilities that repeatedly test positive for infectious pathogens.)
The Subcommittee's information gathering, which is ongoing, is in anticipation of the DeCoster's voluntary appearance before Congressional members on Tuesday, September 21 (Hearing on Salmonella Outbreak and Egg Recall, beginning at 12 noon EDT). "Habitual violator" DeCoster, up until now, has been almost Howard Hughes-like in his ability to avoid direct media scrutiny and public accountability for the recent outbreak, the eyebrow-raising conditions at his egg farms, and several past infractions.
Whether DeCoster's S. entertidis isolates are related to the recent salmonella outbreak is currently unknown (or at least unpublicized). DNA characteristics of DeCoster's bacterial samples, including recent samples detected by the FDA, would have to be compared with those of bacteria cultured from infected individuals. The CDC reports that this egg-borne salmonella outbreak is distinct in that DeCosters' eggs are infected internally—meaning through the infection of his chickens' ovaries.
* Waxman's and Stupak's letter indicates that DeCoster provided, on request, documents to the Subcommittee on September 11, but that these did not contain the "potentially positive Salmonella Enteritidis test reults." The congressmen want to know why these reports weren't provided by DeCoster.
** Serogroup D includes the bacterial species S. enteritidis.
