WASHINGTON — Members of a House subcommittee showed photos of dead chickens, bugs and holes in hen houses today as they prepared to question the heads of two egg farms linked to as many as 1,600 cases of salmonella poisoning this summer.

The committee chairman, Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich., said the outbreak paints "a very disturbing picture of egg production in America."

The owner of Wright County Egg, Austin "Jack" DeCoster, said in prepared testimony he was "horrified" to learn his eggs might have sickened so many people. But DeCoster also suggested the outbreak might not be his company's fault.

Sarah Lewis, 30, testified that she still has diarrhea, fevers and stress despite a trip to the intensive care unit and several weeks of sickness after eating a custard tart at her sister's graduation banquet. Her sister also contracted salmonella poisoning from the eggs.

"Knowing how sick we were scares the heck out of us now," Lewis said.

The panel has asked DeCoster to come prepared to explain what steps have been taken to address salmonella contamination found at the farms.

In testimony released by the company, Wright County Egg, DeCoster and his son, Peter DeCoster, say they believe an ingredient sold to them by an outside supplier might be to blame for the outbreak.