Before you reach for a jar of peanut butter or package of peanut butter cookies off the shelf of a grocery store, you may want to take into consideration the latest salmonella outbreak affecting the U.S.

          Recently, the Peanut Corporation of America in Blakely, Georgia became the source of a dangerous salmonella outbreak. Salmonella is a type of bacteria that causes typhoid fever, paratyphoid fever, and the foodborne illness salmonellosis. Approximately 40,000 cases of salmonella infection are reported in the U.S. each year. Sometimes it takes several days for symptoms to develop, and the most at risk for having a severe illness are the elderly, infants, and those with impaired immune systems.

          Around 637 illnesses and nine deaths have been the result of this contamination, which was caused by many health violations of the plant. For example, the Food and Drug Administration found a leaky roof, mold, roaches, and rodents at the plant. State officials also learned that they didn’t have a state health certificate. The extensive recalls of numerous products left the plant no choice but to liquidate the company.

          2,000 products were recalled that contained peanuts, peanut butter, or peanut paste from the company. For a detailed list of these countless product recalls, go to fda.com or foodconsumer.com for a question-and-answer list.