Salmonella in eggs sickens 7 in Minn.

At least seven Minnesotans suffered salmonella poisoning after eating eggs from an Iowa-based food producer, state health department officials said Monday.

Health department spokesman Doug Schultz said that the illnesses have been traced back to Wright County Egg in Galt, Iowa. Last week, the company issued a voluntary recall of eggs distributed to eight states, including Minnesota, due to reports of salmonella-related illness.

Three people became sick after eating at Kingdom Buffet in Rochester, Minn. in May. Two months later, another four people fell ill after eating at Muffuletta in St. Paul.

One person was briefly hospitalized, Schultz said, but all have since recovered.

Schultz said that restaurant owners cooperated with state officials to trace the illnesses back to the same source.

Salmonella can cause fever, stomach cramps and diarrhea. The illness usually lasts four to seven days, and most people recover without antibiotic treatment, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But in some cases, severe diarrhea or other complications require hospitalization.

The eggs affected by this recall were distributed to food wholesalers, distribution centers and foodservice companies in California, Illinois, Missouri, Colorado, Nebraska, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa.

Eggs from Wright County Egg are packaged under the following brand names: Lucerne, Albertson, Mountain Dairy, Ralph's, Boomsma's, Sunshine, Hillandale, Trafficanda, Farm Fresh, Shoreland, Lund, Dutch Farms and Kemps.

Eggs are packed in varying sizes of cartons -- six-egg cartons, dozen-egg cartons, 18-egg cartons -- with Julian dates ranging from 136 to 225 and plant numbers 1026, 1413 and 1946. Dates and codes can be found stamped on the end of the egg carton. The plant number begins with the letter P and then the number. The Julian date follows the plant number, for example: P-1946 223.

Customers should return the products to a store for a full refund, Schultz said.