Health officials are investigating a potential link between a salmonella outbreak that has sickened 162 people in 26 states and the District of Columbia and cucumbers grown in Florida, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

The outbreak strain of salmonella, identified as Salmonella africana, has also been linked to 47 out of 65 people interviewed who reported eating cucumbers, the FDA said Wednesday.

The agency is also investigating a separate outbreak of Salmonella braenderup with 158 illnesses reported in 23 states. “Investigators are working to determine whether the two outbreaks could be linked to the same food vehicle,” the FDA said. Food safety attorney Bill Marler said the simultaneous outbreaks are unusual, with the Salmonella africana strain being particularly rare in the United States.

“Given that the two outbreaks are about the same size and have near the same number of states, they may be the same outbreak – just with multiple strains – that does happen,” Marler told USA Today. “The public should be on alert.”

The FDA says the potentially contaminated cucumbers were whole, dark green, and between 1.5 and 2 inches in diameter and 5 to 9 inches long. 

They were shipped by Fresh Start Produce Sales Inc. of Delray, Florida, in bulk and 24- and 36-count boxes directly to retail distribution centers, wholesalers, and food service distributors in AL, FL, GA, IL, MD, NC, NJ, NY, OH, PA, SC, TN, VA, and WV from May 17th through May 21st, 2024. The company has since initiated a voluntary recall of the cucumbers.

There have been no reported deaths from the outbreaks, but 54 people have been hospitalized. The CDC is also investigating a separate salmonella outbreak linked to backyard poultry, which has sickened 109 people.