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Salmonella fears hit tomato consumption in the US
Restaurants in the United States are removing tomato slices from sandwiches and grocery stores are plucking red plum tomatoes from their produce aisles following a nationwide alert that raw tomatoes may have infected scores of people with a rare form of salmonella.
- Los Angeles Times-Washington Post
- Published: 00:03 June 11, 2008
Washington: Restaurants in the United States are removing tomato slices from sandwiches and grocery stores are plucking red plum tomatoes from their produce aisles following a nationwide alert that raw tomatoes may have infected scores of people with a rare form of salmonella.
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) officials warned consumers over the weekend to avoid Roma, red plum and red round tomatoes not attached to a vine because they may carry salmonella, a bacteria that causes severe abdominal pain and diarrhoea.
At least 145 people have been infected since mid-April, and new cases were being linked to the outbreak on Monday. No deaths were reported.
Based on interviews of patients and a review of purchasing records, federal and state public health officials were able to narrow the likely source to the three types of tomatoes and to eliminate certain growing regions.
Some varieties safe
Tomatoes attached to the vine, cherry and grape tomatoes, and homegrown tomatoes are safe. So are tomatoes grown in Arkansas, California, Georgia, Hawaii, North and South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Puerto Rico. The FDA also cleared tomatoes from Belgium, Canada, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Israel and Netherlands.
"We have pulled tomatoes from all of our restaurants and do not plan to begin serving them again as long as there remains any concern about the tomato supply in this country," said Chris Arnold, a spokesman for Chipotle, the Denver-based burrito chain.
McDonald's, Panera Bread, Potbelly Sandwich Works and Subway were among the restaurants that stopped serving tomatoes this week. Grocery stores, including Safeway, Giant Food, Harris Teeter and Wegmans pulled only tomatoes that the FDA said were suspect and products that might contain those varieties, such as fresh salsas.
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