In a follow-up to the news of a Campylobacter outbreak centered in Oregon, Lynne Terry of The Oregonian quotes Dr. Katrina Hedberg, state epidemiologist in Oregon, as saying restaurants and stores supplied with the product are “mortified” and that one of the six sick people actually consumed chicken liver pills.

Terry reports that in all cases, the chicken livers were processed at Draper Valley Farms in Vernon, Wash., and the processor sold them raw to restaurants and stores, which turned them into pate.

“You have to cook it through and through, just like chicken or ground beef,” Hedberg said.

Draper Valley did not issue a recall. Under U.S. Department of Agriculture regulations, processors are allowed to sell chicken livers tainted with a high level of campylobacter. In fact, one study showed that 77 percent are contaminated with the bacteria.

“This is a high-risk food,” Hedberg said.