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Salmonellosis annually causes, per CDC estimation, about 1.2 million illnesses, 23,000 hospitalizations, and 450 deaths in the United States every year.
The shell of the egg may be contaminated with Salmonella by feces or environment, or its interior may be contaminated by penetration of the bacteria through the porous shell or from a hen whose infected ovaries contaminate the egg during egg formation.
The U.S. chicken industry's resistance to regulation and its maintenance of unsafe practices at farms and slaughterhouses has resulted in continued widespread presence of the bacteria and resultant infections. Salmonella is found in 8% of the chicken parts tested by the USDA and 25% of ground chicken. Antibiotic resistance has developed in some strains of salmonella.