According to the Miami Herald, a massive salmonella outbreak linked to eggs has
prompted one of the largest egg recalls in the United States in recent years,
involving more than 206 million eggs sold under nine
different brands in nine states.
Food Safety News reports that the egg recall
by Rose Acre Farms is the country’s largest since another salmonella-related
recall in 2010.
So far 22 illnesses have been reported. But it’s
important to note that these illnesses were reported before Rose Acre Farms and
the FDA announced the recall. This means most of the 206,749,258 eggs are still
in stores and home refrigerators or have been used, thrown away, or consumed.
The FDA traced the eggs back to an egg factory
farm in Hyde County, North Carolina. Rose Acre Farms is the second-largest egg
producer in the United States, and its supplier in Hyde County confines about 3
million egg-laying hens, producing about 2.3 million eggs per day.
Salmonella outbreaks are more common than you
think. The
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that salmonella
infections cause about 1.2 million illnesses and 450 deaths every year in the
United States and most are linked to animal products.
The truth is that egg factory farms are filthy
places with hens packed several to a cage. So diseases like salmonella run
rampant. The pathogen infects the hens but does not make
them sick, so they show no symptoms. But when it enters a bird’s ovary or
oviduct, it can infect the egg as it forms.
The vast majority of hens live in barren battery
cages with less floor space than the dimensions of a sheet of notebook paper.
Mercy For Animals investigators have documented numerous cases of rotting
carcasses in cages with hens still laying eggs for human consumption.
What’s more, because male chicks don’t lay eggs
or grow quickly enough to be raised profitably for meat, they are often killed
within hours of hatching. Some are ground
up alive, while others are gassed or suffocated.
Don’t believe us? Watch this MFA undercover
investigation at Gray Ridge Egg Farms, one of Canada’s largest egg producers.
Eggs are clearly products of cruelty. By switching to a compassionate vegan diet you
can withdraw your support from the inhumane egg industry.
So what are you waiting for? Click here to get
started. And check out our Pinterest page for thousands of recipe ideas.
Click here for tips on replacing eggs for breakfast.
And click here for tips on baking without eggs.