The U.S. Food and Drug administration is advising consumers not to eat alfalfa sprouts produced by Tiny Greens Organic Farm of Urbana, Ill., in part because preliminary results of the investigation of a multistate outbreak of Salmonella infections indicate a link to eating Tiny Greens Alfalfa Sprouts at Jimmy John’s restaurants.

Officials with Public Health — Dayton & Montgomery County said Tuesday that they were told by franchise owners of the two Dayton-area Jimmy John’s outlets — at 1157 Brown St. near the University of Dayton campus and at 2325 Miamisburg-Centerville Road in Miami Twp., near the Dayton Mall — that the eateries use a different supplier for alfalfa sprouts, according to Alan Pierce, bureau of general services supervisor for Public Health.

Pierce said there have been no reported cases in Ohio of Salmonella linked to the strain implicated in the most recent outbreak.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday has affected at least 94 people in 16 states, including 50 people in Illinois. The outbreak began in November. No deaths have been reported.

Ali Goldner, spokeswoman for the Champaign, Ill.-based Jimmy John’s sandwich restaurant chain, said she had no information specific to the Dayton-area restaurants, but she provided an e-mail from the restaurant chain’s founder, Jimmy John Liautaud, alerting Jimmy John’s franchise owners to the outbreak and asking all Illinois Jimmy John’s stores to pull alfalfa sprouts temporarily as a “good faith and goodwill gesture,” Liautaud wrote.

The sprouts were distributed to Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri and may also have been distributed to other Midwestern states, the FDA said. There were no reports Tuesday that the sprouts were sold in Ohio.

The FDA said consumers, retailers and others who find they have Tiny Greens Alfalfa Sprouts or Spicy Sprouts should throw them away in a sealed container. Public Health officials advised consumers to wash their hands first, then wash all produce thoroughly before eating.

Sprouts are a known source of foodborne illness, the FDA said. Since 1996, there have been at least 30 reported outbreaks of foodborne illness associated with different types of raw and lightly cooked sprouts.

Most persons infected with Salmonella develop diarrhea, fever and abdominal cramps 12 to 72 hours after infection. The illness usually lasts four to seven days, and most persons recover without treatment. However, some individuals may require hospitalization from severe diarrhea, and the risk to the elderly, infants and those with impaired immune systems is more severe.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2258 or mfisher @DaytonDailyNews.com.