State Recalls Raw Milk Tainted With Salmonella

State health officials Friday ordered all Stueve’s Natural raw milk code dated JUL 27A through JUL 31A removed from stores throughout California after a half-gallon of the milk was found to be contaminated with potentially lethal salmonella bacteria.

There were no reports of any illnesses stemming from the milk.

Scott Lewis, a spokesman for the state Department of Health Services, said salmonella bacteria can cause diarrhea, fever and other symptoms, and sometimes are fatal to infants, the elderly and people in poor health.

Agriculture officials said the “remove from sale” order affects about 36,000 gallons of milk, most of which went on sale on Monday or Tuesday.

The milk, which is produced by a firm headquartered in Chino, is distributed throughout the state. Lewis said it typically is found on the health food shelves at grocery markets and in health food stores.

Lewis said raw milk is routinely tested for contamination. He said the salmonella bacteria were discovered in a half-gallon selected at random for testing at a state Department of Food and Agriculture laboratory in Southern California.