FDA clears three more areas in tomato incident
FDA clears three more areas in tomato incident
Indiana, New Mexico and Baja California, Mexico, have been cleared by the Food & Drug Administration regarding the Salmonella Saintpaul outbreak associated with tomatoes.
FDA issued a report June 13 that added Indiana and New Mexico to its list of U.S. states that have not been associated with the Salmonella Saintpaul outbreak associated with tomatoes. It also added Baja California (Norte) as the only Mexican state that is allowed to export tomatoes to the United States, but shipments must be accompanied with a certificate issued by the Secretaria de Fomento Agropecuario del Gobierno del Estado de Baja California (Agency), confirming the tomatoes were produced there.
Because each area of a state, territory or country where tomatoes are produced is unique, the process employed to determine those areas that are not associated with the outbreak involves a combination of one or more criteria: the date of initial commercial harvest of tomatoes in the area, if tomatoes from the area were shipped intrastate, the types of tomatoes produced, distribution patterns of the tomatoes (to determine if the tomatoes were shipped to states with confirmed illnesses), preliminary data from FDA tracebacks, information from the USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service and other relevant information provide by the states.
The FDA's June 13 update noted that 228 cases of Salmonella -- up from 167 on Thursday, June 12 -- have been reported since mid-April. At least 25 hospitalizations have been reported. The strain is Salmonella Saintpaul, an uncommon form of Salmonella bacteria.
FDA issued a report June 13 that added Indiana and New Mexico to its list of U.S. states that have not been associated with the Salmonella Saintpaul outbreak associated with tomatoes. It also added Baja California (Norte) as the only Mexican state that is allowed to export tomatoes to the United States, but shipments must be accompanied with a certificate issued by the Secretaria de Fomento Agropecuario del Gobierno del Estado de Baja California (Agency), confirming the tomatoes were produced there.
Because each area of a state, territory or country where tomatoes are produced is unique, the process employed to determine those areas that are not associated with the outbreak involves a combination of one or more criteria: the date of initial commercial harvest of tomatoes in the area, if tomatoes from the area were shipped intrastate, the types of tomatoes produced, distribution patterns of the tomatoes (to determine if the tomatoes were shipped to states with confirmed illnesses), preliminary data from FDA tracebacks, information from the USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service and other relevant information provide by the states.
The FDA's June 13 update noted that 228 cases of Salmonella -- up from 167 on Thursday, June 12 -- have been reported since mid-April. At least 25 hospitalizations have been reported. The strain is Salmonella Saintpaul, an uncommon form of Salmonella bacteria.
