The Ramona poultry farm linked to a salmonella outbreak questioned San Diego County officials’ description of the investigation.
“No one has asked us to issue a recall,” Chloe Nevarez, co-owner of Happy Hens said on Saturday, countering a statement issued by the county the previous day.
According to her, officials from both the county and state as well as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) asked Happy Hens during a phone call on Friday for their thoughts on a possible recall but did not request one.
The county had said that the California Department of Public Health recommended a voluntary recall that following an FDA inspection unrelated to the outbreak, which was first reported last month.
“Salmonella was found by the FDA in two of seven hen houses tested. Genetic testing of the salmonella linked the farm to the strains from ill San Diegans,” the statement read, adding, “As of Sept. 4, 2026, Happy Hens has not voluntarily issued the request to remove eggs from markets.”
A spokesperson for the county did not respond to a request for comment on Saturday.
Nevarez said that the farm had already stopped selling eggs linked to the two hen houses in question.
“We haven’t used any of those eggs from those pastures out of precaution,” she said.
The outbreak, which had been under investigation by the county since July, has now been linked to 23 salmonella cases around Del Mar, Jamul, La Jolla and Ramona as well as one case in Riverside County. It is not related to an outbreak linked to 134 cases of salmonella in 18 states, including California.
“The county’s Department of Environmental Health and Quality has reached out to all retail food facilities to ensure Happy Hens eggs that are associated with the outbreak are not used or distributed to the public until safe to do so,” county officials’ statement read.
However, Nevarez said, the county’s initial assessment listed 18 cases prior to announcing the outbreak; she also said that she was told by a state official that cases reported after that type of public statement were not as reliable.
“The product on the market has only gone out on the market from unaffected sites,” she said.
She said that the county’s statement has put her farm between a rock and a hard place.
“We have a lot of questions because things don’t seem to add up. We’re not trying to be contrary,” she said. “We have been 100% cooperative with officials since this investigation started, and those questions should not determine whether we’re perceived to be compliant or not.”
Officials urged the public to continue using care when cooking and eating eggs:
- Cook eggs thoroughly until yolks and whites are firm.
- Discard suspicious eggs. Do not eat eggs that are already cracked. Throw away eggs that appear to have dirty shells.
- Practice safe handling. Always wash hands, utensils, prep surfaces, and containers with hot, soapy water after handling raw eggs.
