The Michigan Department of Community Health first detected a cluster of Salmonella Typhimurium cases in June. Eleven out of fourteen of the ill had consumed "fresh-squeezed" orange juice at upscale retail markets. The markets purchased the orange juice from one juice processor, Orchid Island Juice Company, which was located in Florida. This strain of Salmonella Typhimurium had not previously been seen in the USA. The same strain of Salmonella Typhimurium was identified in persons from other states. A case control study further implicated orange juice produced by this company.

None of the orange juice samples that were tested were shown to carry Salmonella Typhimurium, however an orange juice sample that was tested in July, yielded Salmonella Saintpaul. Five cases of Salmonella Saintpaul were subsequently found in three states that matched this strain. One of the Salmonella Saintpaul cases reported consumption of Orchid Island Orange Juice.

The company's web site said that they were compliance with the juice HACCP regulation, however they were not in actual compliance. The products were labeled as all natural fresh, without indicating unpasteurized or a treatment method that was used. The orange juice had been sold under many different names, nationwide and internationally, and when sold in restaurants and resorts, was sold by the glass. It was unclear about how the orange juice originally became contaminated.

Later in the year, between August 1 and December 6, four additional cases of the same strain of Salmonella Typhimurium and seven cases of the same strain of Salmonella Saintpaul were detected by PulseNet. It was unclear if these had a direct link to orange juice consumption.