Six people in Minnesota have contracted salmonella poisoning after consuming the same brand of frozen chicken Kiev, prompting a consumer alert from the state Department of Health.

While the department isn't ordering a recall of the tainted products — Antioch Farms brand A La Kiev raw stuffed chicken breast — it is urging people to either discard them or make sure they are cooked to a temperature of at least 165 degrees.

The salmonella risk was much more common until 2008, when packaging was improved to clarify that these contained raw meat, the Health Department said Thursday.

"The problem arises when consumers don't realize that they are handling and preparing a raw product," said Dr. Carrie Rigdon, an investigator for the Minnesota Department of Agriculture Dairy and Food Inspection Division.

One of the six patients required hospital care for the illness.

State disease investigators isolated the source of contamination in part because all six cases involved infections with the same strain, Salmonella Enteritidis. The infections all occurred in August and September. The products involved have a U.S. Department of Agriculture stamped code of P-1358.

Six similar outbreaks involving the frozen, breaded chicken products occurred between 1998 and 2008, prompting new labeling to make clear that they contained chicken that was raw. This is the first such outbreak since then.

The state typically sees about 700 cases of salmonella poisoning each year. Symptoms include diarrhea, abdominal pain and cramps and fever, and begin within 12 to 72 hours of consumption of tainted food.

Jeremy Olson • 612-673-7744