Fall cookouts and grocery shortcuts collide with a live produce outbreak. Food Safety News and Food Poisoning Bulletin, citing CDC/FDA updates, report an Everything Sprouts alfalfa-sprout investigation with about 76 confirmed cases across 16 states involving multiple E. coli strains and Salmonella Agona, plus six hospitalizations and no deaths in the latest tallies. FDA’s September 2026 sprouts investigation page also tracks a separate Evergreen Fresh Sprouts broccoli-sprout Salmonella Bovismorbificans cluster with dozens of cases in multiple states.

Sprouts are a recurring risk because warm, humid growing conditions that germinate seeds also favor bacteria. Public-health advice is blunt: do not eat recalled or outbreak-linked sprouts; check lot codes; and seek care for bloody diarrhea, high fever, or severe dehydration. Pregnant people, young children, older adults, and immunocompromised patients should be especially careful with raw sprouts even outside outbreak weeks.

Weekend football tailgates multiply the hazard when coolers warm in the sun and raw produce shares knives with raw meat. Wash hands, keep perishable salads below 40°F, and throw out food left out more than two hours (one hour in extreme heat). Overnight sticks to the named sprout investigations rather than inventing a broader “tailgate virus.” Grocery stores sometimes leave sprout tubs on open refrigerated shelves where customers handle them; check best-by dates and packaging seals. When in doubt, cook sprouts thoroughly or skip them until the outbreak notices clear. Named outlets and primary documents remain the standard for every figure in this brief.

What we know:
Everything Sprouts alfalfa sprouts are tied to a 76-case multistate outbreak; a separate broccoli-sprout Salmonella cluster is also under investigation.

What we don’t:
Whether additional brands or lots will be added before the investigations close.