Last month there were ten people in California who became sick after consuming tainted Nacho Cheese from a Gas Station. It has now been confirmed by health officials earlier this week that one of those ten people have died.
A father from California has died
Martin Galindo, father or two, has passed away after contracting botulism from the tainted nacho cheese at the gas station in California. The 37-year-old father was taken off of life support on Thursday after battling for several weeks against the foodborne illness he had contracted from the nacho cheese.
Tests confirmed the cheese contained a toxin
This gas station nacho cheese – which was supplied by the Valley Oak Food and Fuel gas station located in Walnut Grove was confirmed to contain a toxin that is capable of causing botulism. While the death had previously been confirmed by California health officials last week to be connected to the botulism investigation, it was not until now that his identity was revealed.
Tests revealed this same foodborne illness has made at least nine other people sick. One of these individuals includes a mother of three who is currently in intensive care. Health officials confirmed the gas station stopped selling the tainted nacho cheese on May 5 and are not believed to still be a risk to their customers.
About botulism
Only 3 to 5 percent of individuals who contract this foodborne illness die from it. Symptoms of the illness typically include blurred vision, vomiting, dry mouth, and slurred speech. In some cases, a person may even experience gradual paralysis.
Botulism is a foodborne disease that is typically linked to canned goods in a home that does not follow proper hygiene procedures.
Health officials claim there are still a lot of unanswered questions surrounding this particular outbreak. They, however, believe the tragic incident should serve as a reminder to be extra cautious about food safety.
Gehl Foods
Gehl Foods – the name of a food manufacturer based in Wisconsin – has been named as the supplier of the nacho cheese that was making people sick at the gas station.
The food manufacturer is currently working with federal, state, and local health officials in order to figure out what went wrong. The CEO of the company claimed they are also “praying” for the recovery of the nine individuals who are still battling the foodborne disease.
At this time, the manufacturer’s facilities have passed the necessary tests and are deemed to still be safe places to produce food. All of their food samples are continuing to pass tests and the company does not currently have any recalls on any of their food products.
