Salmonella outbreak linked to pistachios, Dubai chocolate likely to expand, PHAC says

A Dubai brand pistachio and knafeh milk chocolate bar is shown in this undated handout photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Handout - Government of Canada

The Public Health Agency of Canada says it expects to report more salmonella cases linked to certain brands of pistachios and pistachio-containing products in the coming months, adding to the dozens of infections already confirmed in four provinces.

On Tuesday, the federal agency said 52 have been sickened after eating contaminated pistachios and baked goods containing the nut.

That includes 39 people in Quebec, nine in Ontario, three in British Columbia and one in Manitoba.

Nine people have landed in hospital.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has recalled products from the brands Habibi, Al Mokhtar Food Centre and Dubai, distributed in Ontario, Quebec, and sold online to consumers across Canada.

That includes Dubai chocolate, a type of treat that gained viral status for its decadent combination of milk chocolate, gooey pistachio cream and crispy knafeh, a sweet pastry.

The chocolate bar gained fame on TikTok in 2023 as influencers filmed themselves trying the confection, initially created in the United Arab Emirates. The popularity has led to copycat products and spawned many reviews and recipes on food blogs.

April Hexemer, the public health agency’s director of outbreak management, says she expects that reports of salmonella cases will increase because of the time it takes for someone to report an illness and health officials to confirm it.

Hexemer says it can take between 15 and 55 days to identify a case, as it involves the patient seeking care and getting tested to determine if their infection is linked to the outbreak.

“There will be quite some time before we can declare this one over,” Hexemer said in an interview Wednesday.

She said officials estimate there are 26 more cases for every confirmed infection.

“Some people have a milder illness and don’t seek medical care. Or if they do, they may not be subjected to a laboratory test,” Hexemer said.

She said it’s too soon to say if there will be recalls of other pistachio-containing products, or if investigators can determine the origins of the outbreak.

It’s also too early to say why most of the outbreak’s cases – 75 per cent – have been females, ranging in age from two to 89 years old.

Salmonella is a food-borne bacterial illness that can spread several days or weeks after a person is infected, even if they don’t have symptoms.

It can result in severe and potentially deadly infections, particularly for children, pregnant people, the elderly and people with weakened immune systems.

Healthy people may experience short-term symptoms such as fever, headache, vomiting, nausea, cramps and diarrhea. Those symptoms typically start six to 72 hours after exposure, and end within a week.

The food inspection agency encourages consumers to check the brand and product codes in the recall notice and get rid or return products that match the description.

More details can be found at here.

Hannah Alberga, The Canadian Press