South San Francisco Costco recalls chicken

Nearly 40,000 pounds of Foster Farms and associated Kirkland Farms chicken products are being recalled by a Costco in South San Francisco for possible contamination with salmonella, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service said.

An outbreak of the disease has sickened people across the country and recent sampling by the USDA linked three Foster Farms raw chicken processing plants in Central California to the outbreak.

The products were sold to consumers at the location at 1600 El Camino Real between Sept. 11 and Sept. 23. Costco Vice President Craig Wilson did not return a phone call Saturday, but confirmed the recall with NBC Bay Area.

As of Friday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that 317 people had been infected with seven different strains of Salmonella Heidelberg across 20 states and Puerto Rico. California accounted for 73 percent of the illnesses.

As of late Thursday, the inspection service aid it will not close the Foster Farms processing plants in California, after earlier threats to do so.

Costco has two locations in South San Francisco. Officials from the stores did not return inquires, though standard return policies are still in place. Customers can call Costco at (800) 774-2678.