FOOD SAFETY ALERT — NEW YORK DISTRIBUTION
Had raw oysters recently? Check for Little Wicomico before eating another.
Whole oysters from Little Wicomico Oyster Company are recalled in an active multistate Salmonella outbreak. New York distribution is confirmed, and CDC reports four New York illnesses. The reviewed records do not identify a Rockland restaurant, retailer or patient.
Match all three parts of the record
- Dealer: Little Wicomico Oyster Company, certification VA-1421-SP.
- Harvest area: Little Wicomico River, Virginia, or Little Wicomico River Lower, Virginia.
- Harvest dates: September 18 through October 8, 2026.
- Action: Do not eat, serve or sell a match. Throw it away or return it, and wash and sanitize surfaces or containers it touched.
If you bought oysters—or ate them at a restaurant
For shellstock you still have, check the shellfish tag or ask the seller to identify the certified dealer, harvest area and harvest date. If a restaurant served the oysters, ask whether its supplier or recall notice identifies Little Wicomico Oyster Company and the affected harvest window. A menu description such as “Virginia oysters” is not enough by itself to establish a match.
FDA says the recalled oysters went to restaurants and retailers in New York and 15 other listed jurisdictions and may have been distributed farther. Neither FDA nor CDC names the New York businesses in the reviewed public records. The Rockland Edit has not verified a Rockland sale.
What the outbreak record establishes
CDC's October 19 investigation notice reports 27 illnesses in 12 states, including four in New York, five hospitalizations among the 21 people with hospitalization information and no deaths. Illnesses began from May 29 through September 14; the federal agencies say the true count is probably higher because many people recover without testing.
Ten of 13 interviewed patients reported eating raw oysters. CDC says traceback identified Little Wicomico oysters as the only oyster source common to seven patients with available traceback, and a Pennsylvania sample from the company tested positive for Salmonella; whole-genome testing of that oyster sample was still pending in the reviewed October 19 record.
When to seek care
CDC says symptoms commonly include diarrhea, fever and stomach cramps and usually begin six hours to six days after swallowing the bacteria. Call a healthcare provider right away for diarrhea with fever above 102°F, diarrhea lasting more than two days without improvement, bloody diarrhea, vomiting that prevents keeping liquids down or signs of dehydration such as very little urination, dry mouth or dizziness when standing.
Children younger than 5, adults 65 and older and people with weakened immune systems are more likely to have severe illness. This guide cannot determine whether a particular meal caused symptoms; tell the provider about the oyster exposure and use the official records below.
What changes for a Rockland resident: New York distribution and New York illnesses are confirmed, so a recent oyster buyer or diner has a concrete source-and-date check to make. That does not establish a Rockland sale, a local outbreak or that every Virginia oyster is recalled.
Primary records checked October 24, 2026, at 2:50 a.m. EDT: FDA's October 19 safety alert ↗; CDC's October 19 outbreak notice ↗; and the Virginia Department of Health's October 9 recall notice preserved by ISSC ↗. The federal notices say oysters from other Virginia growing areas are not part of this recall. No reviewed source identifies a Rockland business or patient.