Updated September 25, 2026. The Salmonella Bovismorbificans outbreak linked to Evergreen Fresh Sprouts broccoli sprouts has grown to 32 illnesses in Idaho, Minnesota, Montana, Oregon, Utah and Washington. According to the FDA’s September 24 update, three people have been hospitalized, and no deaths have been reported.
Evergreen Fresh Sprouts recalled broccoli sprouts on September 4 after Montana health officials found Salmonella in a sample of the company’s broccoli sprouts. Whole genome sequencing confirmed that the Salmonella found in the sprouts was the same strain causing illnesses in the outbreak.
The recall includes broccoli sprouts packaged in plastic bags or clamshell containers with expiration dates of September 7, 9, 11, 14 and 16. FDA says the recalled sprouts were distributed to grocery stores, restaurants and foodservice customers in Idaho, Montana and Washington and may have reached additional states.
The food safety attorneys at Pritzker Hageman are following the investigation in their report on the Evergreen Fresh Sprouts broccoli sprouts outbreak.
What officials have confirmed so far
Illnesses began between July 7 and September 3, 2026. Of 27 people interviewed, 26 reported eating sprouts or microgreens. Twenty-two specifically reported broccoli sprouts, and one reported a microgreen mix containing broccoli microgreens.
The FDA’s latest outbreak update also describes additional laboratory evidence from Washington. Broccoli sprouts collected from a grocery store and a sick person’s home tested positive for the outbreak strain. Genetic testing confirmed the match. Those products were already covered by the recall.
Investigators are still working to determine how contamination occurred and whether other products may be affected.
Evergreen Fresh Sprouts Broccoli Sprouts have been recalled
Evergreen Fresh Sprouts initiated a recall of broccoli sprouts on September 4, 2026, after Montana officials found Salmonella in the product. The recalled broccoli sprouts were sold in plastic bags and clamshell containers with expiration dates of September 7, 9, 11, 14 and 16.
FDA says the recalled Evergreen Fresh Sprouts broccoli sprouts were sold to grocery stores, restaurants and foodservice customers in Idaho, Montana and Washington. The product may also have been distributed to additional states. Consumers should not eat the recalled sprouts, and restaurants and retailers should not sell or serve them.
Anyone who purchased recalled sprouts should throw them away or return them to the store. FDA and CDC also recommend washing and sanitizing containers and surfaces that may have touched the recalled product.
The Evergreen Fresh Sprouts broccoli sprouts recall is now included in Pritzker Hageman’s Salmonella recall information.
This is not the Everything Sprouts alfalfa sprouts outbreak
The Evergreen Fresh Sprouts broccoli sprouts outbreak is separate from the other major sprout outbreak under investigation in 2026. FDA says it is investigating this outbreak separately from the alfalfa sprouts outbreak, and CDC says this outbreak does not appear to be related to it.
The Evergreen Fresh Sprouts outbreak involves broccoli sprouts and Salmonella Bovismorbificans. The separate Everything Sprouts and Calco alfalfa sprouts outbreak involves alfalfa sprouts, Salmonella Agona and multiple strains of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli. FDA has identified Everything Sprouts alfalfa sprouts as one source of illnesses in that outbreak, but says those sprouts do not explain all of the cases.
Because the outbreaks involve different growers, products and bacteria, they should not be treated as the same investigation.
This grower has been linked to two earlier outbreaks
Evergreen Fresh Sprouts is not new to outbreak investigations. Two earlier ones are documented in the CDC’s own archived outbreak records.
- In 2011, a Salmonella Enteritidis outbreak was linked to alfalfa sprouts and spicy sprouts from Evergreen Fresh Sprouts of Moyie Springs, Idaho. As of July 5, 2011, the CDC counted 25 people infected in five states: Idaho, Montana, New Jersey, North Dakota and Washington. The company recalled specific lots on July 1, 2011.
- In 2014, an E. coli O121 outbreak was traced to raw clover sprouts from the same company. The CDC counted 19 people infected in six states: California, Idaho, Michigan, Montana, Utah and Washington.
The FDA’s public records for the facility also include a Form 483 issued to Evergreen Fresh Sprouts, LLC of Moyie Springs, Idaho on June 6, 2014, following that year’s outbreak. A Form 483 records an investigator’s observations at the end of an inspection. It is not a final agency finding and it is not a warning letter, and the FDA’s reading room entry for the company lists no warning letter.
The earlier outbreaks involved alfalfa, spicy and clover sprouts, not broccoli sprouts. And no agency has said that anything from 2011 or 2014 caused the illnesses reported in 2026. What the record does establish is that this is the third outbreak investigation involving sprouts from this grower in fifteen years, and a family sickened this summer is entitled to know that.
Why sprouts keep causing outbreaks
Sprouts have a long history as an outbreak food, and the reason is in how they are grown. Seeds are germinated in warm, humid conditions, and those are the same conditions that let bacteria multiply. Contamination that starts as a small amount on the seed can spread through an entire batch. Because sprouts are usually eaten raw or barely cooked, there is no kill step between the seed and the plate. Pritzker Hageman explains the pattern in their piece on why E. coli, Salmonella and Listeria illnesses from sprouts keep recurring.
Food Poisoning Bulletin is also following this investigation in its coverage of the Evergreen Fresh broccoli sprouts outbreak. We have also written about what an FDA warning letter to a sprout grower after an outbreak looks like.
Salmonella symptoms to watch for
According to the CDC, Salmonella symptoms usually start 6 hours to 6 days after infection and usually last 4 to 7 days. The main symptoms are watery diarrhea, which may contain blood or mucus, and stomach cramps that can be severe. Some people also have headache, nausea, vomiting or loss of appetite.
The CDC advises calling a healthcare provider for diarrhea or vomiting lasting more than two days, bloody stool or urine, a fever higher than 102 degrees Fahrenheit, or signs of dehydration. Pritzker Hageman also maintains a detailed guide to Salmonella symptoms.
The complications are what turn a Salmonella infection into a serious injury. The CDC says the infection can spread beyond the intestines into the urine, blood, bones, joints, the brain or other internal organs, causing conditions including bacteremia, meningitis, osteomyelitis and septic arthritis. A small number of people go on to develop reactive arthritis, joint pain that the CDC says can last for months or years and can lead to chronic arthritis. Young children, adults over 65, pregnant women and people with weakened immune systems are more likely to become seriously ill.
What to do right now
- Check your refrigerator for broccoli sprouts from Evergreen Fresh Sprouts, LLC. The recalled expiration dates have now passed, so the product should no longer be on sale, but check anything still in the house. Do not eat them. Throw them away or return them to the store.
- Wash anything the sprouts touched, including containers, drawers and cutting surfaces, with hot soapy water or in a dishwasher.
- If you bought sprouts loose, or ate them on a sandwich or salad at a restaurant, deli or co-op, you may not be able to identify a brand. Keep the receipt, the delivery order or a photograph if you have one.
- If you ate sprouts in Idaho, Montana, Utah or Washington since early July and became ill, tell your doctor exactly what you ate and when.
- Ask for a stool culture. A culture is what puts an illness into the outbreak count and gives investigators the genetic fingerprint that ties it to the source. It is also the difference between a documented case and a suspected one.
- Seek medical care for bloody diarrhea, a high fever, diarrhea lasting more than two days, or signs of dehydration.
Do you have a case?
Most people who get food poisoning recover at home and have no reason to call a lawyer. The illnesses that become cases are the serious ones: a hospital stay, an infection that spreads into the blood, bones or joints, lasting damage, or a death.
When an outbreak is traced to a named grower, the legal questions usually follow the supply chain. Was the product contaminated when it left the facility? Did the grower meet the sprout safety rules that apply to it? What did the store or restaurant know, and when? A laboratory match to the outbreak strain is powerful evidence, which is why the stool culture matters so much.
Pritzker Hageman is a national food safety firm that handles these claims nationwide through its Bad Bug Law Team. Their attorneys have published guides on how a Salmonella lawsuit works and on whether you can sue a grocery store for food poisoning, and their Salmonella legal team page explains how they evaluate these claims. Their Salmonella resource center and their Salmonella outbreak news coverage are where updates on this investigation will appear first.
