Fresh cucumbers have been at the center of several significant salmonella outbreaks in the United States, including events that sickened hundreds of people across dozens of states. Unlike shelf-stable products, fresh produce recalls are particularly challenging because cucumbers are often consumed raw, sold quickly, and may already have been eaten or discarded by the time a recall is announced. There are currently multiple food recalls tracked on Recall Tracker, including fresh produce and vegetable products.
This page explains how to check your specific product, why cucumbers are recalled, which agencies oversee these recalls, and what to do if your cucumbers are affected.
Step 1: Locate the label or sticker on the cucumber.
Fresh cucumbers often carry a small sticker with the brand name, PLU code, and country of origin. Packaged or sliced cucumbers will have more complete labeling including a best-by date and lot code printed on the bag or container.
Step 2: Note the UPC barcode.
For packaged cucumbers, the UPC barcode identifies the specific product and pack type. For loose produce sold by the piece, check any accompanying signage or the store's receipt for the brand and origin information.
Step 3: Search Recall Tracker.
Go to Recall Tracker and search the brand name on your cucumber's label or packaging. Cucumber recalls frequently identify affected products by distributor name, growing region, and date range rather than individual lot codes.
Step 4: Use the barcode scanner.
The barcode scanner at /scan lets you scan the UPC on packaged cucumbers directly to check against the recall database. For loose produce, a manual brand search is more practical.
Step 5: Set up brand alerts.
Visit brands and follow cucumber distributors or retailers you purchase from to receive automatic notifications if future recalls are issued.
FDA (Food and Drug Administration) has primary jurisdiction over fresh produce recalls, including cucumbers. Fresh fruits and vegetables are regulated under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and, since the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), under the Produce Safety Rule — which sets standards for agricultural water quality, worker hygiene, and equipment sanitation on farms that grow produce for human consumption. When contaminated cucumbers are identified, the FDA works with growers, distributors, and retailers to trace the source and coordinate recalls. See the FDA agency page for more on how FDA recall authority works.
State departments of agriculture often play a significant role in produce contamination investigations because growing operations are locally regulated and outbreak investigations are frequently initiated by state public health departments before federal involvement.
Salmonella is the primary driver of cucumber recalls in the United States. Multiple multi-state salmonella outbreaks linked to fresh cucumbers have occurred over the past decade. In 2015, a large outbreak linked to imported cucumbers sickened hundreds of people across more than thirty states and resulted in multiple deaths — one of the more serious produce-related outbreaks in recent history. A separate multi-state salmonella outbreak linked to cucumbers occurred in 2023, again affecting a significant number of people across numerous states before the source was identified and products were recalled.
Cucumbers are susceptible to salmonella contamination because they grow close to the ground and can come into contact with contaminated soil, irrigation water, or animal feces. The skin of a cucumber provides some physical barrier, but surfaces can harbor bacteria that transfer to the flesh during cutting. Washing cucumbers before consumption reduces risk but does not fully eliminate it.
A significant portion of cucumbers sold in the United States — particularly during winter months — is imported from Mexico and other countries. Imported cucumbers are subject to FDA import oversight, but the volume of fresh produce entering the U.S. means that only a fraction of shipments are physically inspected before distribution. Contamination events involving imported cucumbers have been linked to agricultural water sources near animal operations, inadequate sanitation at packing facilities, and cross-contamination during transport.
Even domestically grown cucumbers can become contaminated after harvest during washing, waxing, packing, or transport. Packing facilities that handle multiple produce types can be a source of cross-contamination — for example, if a facility also handles a contaminated product and cleaning protocols are insufficient. Sliced or pre-packaged cucumber products carry additional risk because cutting exposes the internal flesh, which is more vulnerable to bacterial growth if temperature control is not maintained throughout the cold chain.
Cucumbers are commonly coated with food-grade wax after harvest to extend shelf life and improve appearance. The wax itself is generally recognized as safe, but questions arise when the wax formulation contains components that are not disclosed on the label — particularly shellac (a resin derived from insects) or other animal-derived components relevant to consumers who follow vegan or certain religious dietary practices. While these are typically labeling rather than safety issues, they have prompted recalls and regulatory attention in some markets.
Stop consuming them immediately. Remove the cucumbers from the refrigerator or counter and do not serve them raw or in salads.
Check who has eaten them. Identify whether anyone in your household has consumed the cucumbers recently, and within what timeframe. Salmonella symptoms typically begin 6 hours to 6 days after eating contaminated food.
Monitor for symptoms. Salmonella symptoms include diarrhea (which may be bloody), abdominal cramps, fever, and nausea. Most healthy adults recover within 4–7 days without treatment.
Seek medical care if symptomatic. Young children, elderly adults, pregnant women, and immunocompromised individuals are at higher risk of severe illness from salmonella. If symptoms are severe — high fever, bloody diarrhea, prolonged vomiting, or signs of dehydration — seek medical care promptly.
Dispose of the cucumbers safely. If the cucumbers are loose produce, dispose of them in a covered trash container. If packaged, note the brand, lot code, and best-by date before disposal if you intend to seek a refund.
Clean surfaces and utensils. If you cut recalled cucumbers on a cutting board or with a knife, wash all surfaces with hot soapy water and sanitize. Salmonella can survive on kitchen surfaces and cause secondary contamination.
Report illness. If you or a family member became ill, report it to the FDA at fda.gov/safety/medwatch and to your state health department. Consumer illness reports are essential for detecting and stopping outbreaks.
No. While washing reduces surface contamination, it does not reliably eliminate salmonella, which can be embedded in surface irregularities or introduced during cutting. Peeling removes the outer skin but may spread surface contamination to the flesh during the peeling process. The FDA does not recommend consuming recalled cucumbers even after washing or peeling — dispose of them.
Salad bars use bulk produce that may not have individual consumer packaging with lot codes. If a recall affects cucumbers from a particular distributor or growing region, contact the restaurant or grocery store and ask where their cucumbers are sourced. You can also monitor the FDA's recall announcements directly for distributor-level recall notices that would affect food service supply chains.
Fresh produce recalls often lag behind contamination events because outbreak investigations take time — illness reports must accumulate, state health departments must conduct interviews, and traceback investigations linking illnesses to a specific product must be completed. By the time a recall is announced, the contaminated product has often already been sold and largely consumed or discarded. This is why monitoring recall alerts in real time is important.
Cucumber recalls typically specify the type (slicing, English, mini/Persian) and packaging format in the recall notice. A recall affecting field-grown slicing cucumbers from a particular distributor may not automatically include greenhouse-grown English cucumbers from a different source. Check the specific recall notice for the exact products covered.
Search all food recalls to check your specific brand and product, and browse food brands to set up automatic alerts for produce brands you purchase regularly. You can also view recall statistics by category to understand fresh produce recall trends over time. As of {{CURRENT_DATE}}, Recall Tracker is actively monitoring recalls from FDA, USDA, and seven additional agencies.
Yes. In 2024, FDA and CDC linked cucumbers to a multistate Salmonella outbreak with 449 illnesses in 31 states and Washington, D.C., and a separate November 2024 cucumber outbreak ended with 113 illnesses across 23 states and 28 hospitalizations. To check whether a specific product or store-brand item was affected, search the distributor or retailer on /brands and compare it with current alerts.
Start with the package, sticker, receipt, or store label, because cucumber recalls often identify the grower, importer, or retailer rather than a household brand name. If your cucumbers came in a wrapped tray or salad kit, use /scan to pull up matching recall notices; if they were sold loose, use /brands to search the store, distributor, or product line instead.
Watch for Salmonella symptoms such as diarrhea, fever, and stomach cramps, which usually begin 12 to 72 hours after exposure and can last 4 to 7 days. If you still have the product, throw it away and wash any drawers, cutting boards, knives, or containers it touched; RecallTracker Premium at /pricing is useful if you want ongoing alerts for future produce recalls without checking manually.
Most major cucumber recalls in the U.S. have involved Salmonella contamination, including whole cucumbers and foods made with them such as sliced cucumbers, salads, wraps, and sushi. You can track how often cucumbers show up in outbreaks, how many states were affected, and hospitalization counts on /statistics, which helps separate isolated store notices from large national events.
Sometimes, but not always. Loose cucumbers often have only a PLU sticker or no consumer barcode at all, so /scan works best for packaged cucumber products like salad kits, veggie trays, or sliced cucumber cups; for unpackaged produce, /brands is usually the faster way to confirm whether your store or supplier was named in a recall.