Trader Joe's is recalling plastic tubs of alfalfa sprouts today because of reports that the product may be tainted with an unspecified illness-causing contaminant. The sprout recall comes a day after growers in the Sacramento area reported that bulk shipments of alfalfa sprouts to packaging companies may have been contaminated with salmonella. A large alfalfa sprout recall has been started in Northern California.

The South Pasadena-based Trader Joe's chain says it has not received any reports of people actually getting sick from the alfalfa sprouts, which were packaged into plastic tubs by a food company in the Los Angeles suburb of Maywood. The product is "Nature's Choice Alfalfa Sprouts" sold in tubs at Trader Joe's stores in California and five other western states, and has expiration dates of March 9 or earlier. The sprouts were packed by the J.H. Caldwell and Sons warehouse in Maywood, about 8 miles southeast of the Los Angeles Civic Center.

A newspaper in Sacramento reported that growers near Dixon may have harvested alfalfa sprouts contaminated with salmonella, triggering recalls of packaged sprouts at grovery stores in the Bay Area and central valley regions. The salmonella may have existed in the medium that the sprouts are grown in, an official said. Salmonella can cause death for very young children or persons with weakened immune systems, but may only cause intestinal discomfort for healthy people.