Update: Salmonella on vegetables
Update: July 29, 2008: To date, 1307 persons have been infected with Salmonella Saintpaul. Jalapeño peppers are likely to be the major cause of this outbreak, but fresh serrano peppers and fresh tomatoes remain under investigation. An FDA laboratory detected Salmonella Saintpaul with the outbreak strain fingerprint pattern in a sample of jalapeño pepper obtained from a distribution center in McAllen, Texas. The peppers were grown in Mexico, but it is not yet clear exactly where they were contaminated. The distributor is working with the FDA to recall the contaminated product in the United States.
July 21, 2008: The FDA has found Salmonella saintpaul on a single jalapeno pepper in a small produce distribution plant, Agricola Zaragosa, in McCallum, Texas. The pepper was contaminated with the same strain of the organism that caused the outbreak that infected more than 1,200 people since May. The plant has issued a recall on its peppers, which were shipped to Georgia and Texas.
Although this is a potential breakthrough in the investigation, FDA officials caution that this still does not tell the whole story or rule out tomatoes as the possible source of the outbreak. The FDA will continue its investigation as new cases continue to be reported. There have been 14 new cases of Salmonella saintpaul since Friday, bringing the total number of infections to 1,251.
via MedPage Today, July 21, 2008
July 18, 2008: There are now 1,220 people in 42 states who have fallen ill from Salmonella Saintpaul. Investigators still don’t know what caused the salmonella outbreak, but the CDC says there are signs that the outbreak is slowing. Florida has been cleared as a source of contamination while the ongoing investigation is currently focusing on a packing house in Mexico. The FDA has cleared tomatoes from the list, but a warning remains in place about the risk of Salmonella saintpaul with jalapeno and serrano peppers. In an article for MedPage Today, the FDA says “it was theoretically possible that a farm where tomatoes were grown in April might have fields that are now producing peppers and that both crops could have been watered from the same contaminated source”.
July 11, 2008: As of yesterday, 1,065 cases have been confirmed . Most of the sick are in the Southwestern U.S. The first victim fell sick April 10 and the latest so far was on June 26, which means the source of the Salmonella Saintpaul infection is still on the market. Raw tomatoes, raw jalapeno peppers and fresh cilantro remain the focus of the investigation.
July 9, 2008: The number of confirmed illness from Salmonella Saintpaul now reaches 1,017 with one death of a man from Texas in his 80s. Raw tomatoes remain the chief culprit although raw jalapeno peppers also appear to have made some people sick, but do not explain all the illnesses. Fresh serrano peppers as well as fresh cilantro also are being investigated.
July 5, 2008: To date, more than 900 people have contracted Salmonella Saintpaul infection. The source of the epidemic remains unclear; initially, health inspectors focused on tomatoes, but now they are also looking at cilantro, several types of peppers (including jalapenos and serranos), scallions and bulb onions. U.S. inspectors are currently focusing their investigation on specific areas in Mexico, and certain shipments of food will no longer be allowed to come into the United States.
June 29, 2008 - The number of cases continues to rise with 810 people now confirmed ill from salmonella Saintpaul. The latest diagnosed case became sick on June 15 which is concerning because the source of the outbreak may still be present and out on the market. According to the CDC, the greatest number of Salmonella Saintpaul cases is 342 in Texas. New Mexico is next with 85 cases and Illinois follows close behind with 78. At least 95 people, age one to 99, have been hospitalized.
U.S. officials are now investigating whether the tomatoes are the actual culprits or if the problem is with another ingredient. Tomatoes, however, remain the focus of all investigations and previous consumer recommendations from the FDA and CDC have not changed (see below).
Some 40,000 cases of salmonellosis are reported in the United States each year, and approximately 600 people die each year after being infected. According to the CDC “Most persons infected with Salmonella develop diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps 12-72 hours after infection. Infection is usually diagnosed by culture of a stool sample. The illness usually lasts 4-7 days. Although most people recover without treatment, severe infections may occur. Infants, elderly persons, and those with impaired immune systems are more likely than others to develop severe illness. When severe infection occurs, Salmonella may spread from the intestines to the bloodstream and then to other body sites, and can cause death.”
The FDA is urging consumers nationwide to avoid raw red plum, red Roma or red round tomatoes unless they were grown in specific states or countries that FDA has cleared of suspicion. The FDA is actively updating their website which lists areas of the country that are considered safe. Tomatoes which have never been infected include grape tomatoes, cherry tomatoes and tomatoes sold with the vine still attached. The CDC warns consumers to be aware that raw tomatoes are often used in the preparation of fresh salsa, guacamole, and pico de gallo. They are part of fillings for tortillas, and are used in many other dishes.
The CDC also advises consumers to:
- Refrigerate tomatoes within 2 hours or discard cut, peeled, or cooked tomatoes.
- Avoid purchasing bruised or damaged tomatoes and discard any that appear spoiled.
- Thoroughly wash all tomatoes under running water.
- Keep tomatoes that will be consumed raw separate from raw meats, raw seafood, and raw produce items.
- Wash cutting boards, dishes, utensils, and counter tops with hot water and soap when switching between types of food products. The FDA has recently signed a new food safety agreement with China and will opening three offices in that country. India and Latin America are the focus of future negotiations. The main goal of the planned FDA offices would be to ensure that food and other products from these countries are safe for consumption or use.June 23, 2008 - Investigators are narrowing their search to packing houses and distribution warehouses in both Mexico and Florida. These facilities handle tomatoes from many farms and could be the source of the salmonella contamination.
via CDC, “Investigation of Outbreak of Infections Caused by Salmonella Saintpaul” June 26, 2008
via HHS.gov, “United States and China Outline Progress on Agreement on Food and Feed Safety”
June 24, 2008 - FDA inspectors are focusing their investigation on tomatoes from three states in Mexico: Jalisco, Sinaloa and Coahuila. Almost all Mexican tomato exports to the U.S. have been halted. This is the second of two salmonella outbreaks this Spring thought to originate from Latin America. Cantaloupes from Honduras were implicated in a salmonella outbreak in March of this year.
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With health safety and security such a vital part of our daily lives and the lives of our children we need to focus on the precautions that save lives and the lives, health and welfare of our families, we need to vote McCain into office because of the safety standards he readily represents, we need to teach and ENSURE proper sanitation and washing procedures to our industries from the entry-level workers on up and we need to preserve safe and secure food distribution and storage for all of the points on our food supply networks. Without these proper and vital elements of our daily food production and distribution industry we are opening ourselves up for increasing occurences of this terrifying indignity and magnitude.
There’s no way around that. Security and precautions for our food, the lifes blood of our children and our families is the ultimate goal for everyone. The vote for McCain is the only vote that ensures this is in Americas forefront. An American President to The White House in 08!! We all need to relax and use the common sense and dignity we all have inside.