Daniele Inc., the Rhode Island company, has fetched slanderous charges on account of its salami products to have a link with Salmonella outbreak that has grown to 40 states.

"Samples of the black pepper used to coat these products have tested positive for salmonella, and a sample of the recalled product has been linked to an outbreak of salmonellosis", the company said in an online letter to customers dated yesterday.

The US Department of Agriculture previously prompted that the company believed that its black pepper might be contaminated, but the issue was not confirmed until the letter and FAQ statement were issued.

The products were sold in stores in Costco stores in B. C., Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, and Super C stores in Quebec. However, the company has not disclosed the name of the supplier of the black pepper

In addition, the firm also did not pointed whether the Salmonella strain found in the pepper matched the outbreak strain.

The company has recalled 1.24 million pounds of salami products on Jan 23 because of the outbreak.

The first issue of a direct link between Daniele products and the outbreak came yesterday, when University of Iowa investigators unveiled finding the strain in a leftover product from an Iowa patient.