More Than Tomatoes in Salmonella Outbreak

Monday, July 07, 2008

Tara Gidus, MS, RD, CSSD, LD/N

A few new foods have been added to the investigation around the salmonella outbreak in the US. Since April there have been 943 cases in 40 states of the same salmonella strain (salmonella saintpaul). While tomatoes were the original suspect, officials are now looking at salsa and the ingredients in fresh salsa as potentially contaminated.

Now added to the suspect list:
Fresh Cilantro
Jalepeno Peppers
Serrano Peppers
Still on the list:
Red Plum Tomatoes
Red Roma Tomatoes
Round Red Tomatoes

What does this mean?
You do not have to completely avoid all fresh fruits and vegetables. If you have a compromised immune system, you want to be extra careful with all fresh produce and meats. However, the CDC recommends the following to minimize risk.

Consumers everywhere are advised to:

• Refrigerate 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.

Photo courtesy of recipes.howstuffworks.com

Labels: salmonella, Tara Gidus, tomatoes

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