United addresses Salmonella issue
United addresses Salmonella issue
(United Fresh Produce Association e-mailed the following information Tuesday evening, July 8 on the "status of government food safety advice to consumers and industry" regarding the Salmonella saintpaul outbreak.)
Over the past 24 hours, we have received a number of questions from members regarding the [Food & Drug Adminstration's] and [Centers for Disease Control & Prevention's] official advice to consumers and the industry regarding potential actions related to the Salmonella saintpaul outbreak.
We have been talking with a number of you to answer these questions individually, but also recognize the need to provide a collective message for all of you that you can use with your customers and suppliers.
We also recognize that this entire outbreak investigation has been the most frustrating and costly food safety event ever for many of you. United Fresh Produce Association is committed to wholesale change in the way government manages future outbreak situations, and we have previously shared our communications with the senior level of the Bush administration.
We are now engaged extensively with FDA, CDC, members of Congress and other country['s] governments in discussing these issues, to both drive immediate action now and long-term fundamental reform for the future. Once this outbreak is over and we finally determine its cause, we also are committed to working with Congress and the administration on compensation for those who have been harmed by the flawed process of this outbreak investigation.
However, we also have to recognize that the illnesses caused by this strain of Salmonella saintpaul have not ended, and government health officials must continue to try aggressively to pinpoint the source. While there is tremendous speculation and growing evidence that tomatoes of any kind may not be the source, neither CDC nor FDA are willing to rule this out at this time.
At the same time, these agencies are not clinging to what may have been a mistaken first conclusion, but are also examining the possibility that a different food source may be causing the ongoing illnesses. Many media reports have cited certain chili peppers and cilantro as commodities of interest, but a wide range of other food products is also being studied. That is a proper step.
For the fresh produce supply chain, it is critical to note that neither CDC nor FDA have provided any consumer cautions about any other produce items. It would be unwise for industry to begin following speculation about these commodities as reason for any change in the marketplace, when CDC and FDA will clearly announce their concerns if they rise to that level. We advise all industry members to continue to review the specific advice on the CDC and FDA websites in making all product decisions. That advice can be summarized as follows:
-- FDA has published an extensive list of production regions from which all tomatoes can be freely sourced. These include production regions in both the United States and Mexico, and those areas are identified on the FDA website.
-- Consumers are advised to avoid any raw Roma, plum and red round tomatoes from areas that are not on the "cleared list." We know of no tomatoes from these regions that are now on the market, but supply chain partners should be sure of that in their own operations.
-- All cherry tomatoes, grape tomatoes and tomatoes with the vine still attached have been officially cleared by FDA and can also be consumed freely.
-- Neither FDA nor CDC have issued any consumer or industry advisories with regard to any other produce or food item, including chili peppers, cilantro or other commodities. We have full confidence that if these agencies determine that there is a substantive risk associated with any other commodity, from any particular source, they will issue such information immediately, and we will update you.
Over the past 24 hours, we have received a number of questions from members regarding the [Food & Drug Adminstration's] and [Centers for Disease Control & Prevention's] official advice to consumers and the industry regarding potential actions related to the Salmonella saintpaul outbreak.
We have been talking with a number of you to answer these questions individually, but also recognize the need to provide a collective message for all of you that you can use with your customers and suppliers.
We also recognize that this entire outbreak investigation has been the most frustrating and costly food safety event ever for many of you. United Fresh Produce Association is committed to wholesale change in the way government manages future outbreak situations, and we have previously shared our communications with the senior level of the Bush administration.
We are now engaged extensively with FDA, CDC, members of Congress and other country['s] governments in discussing these issues, to both drive immediate action now and long-term fundamental reform for the future. Once this outbreak is over and we finally determine its cause, we also are committed to working with Congress and the administration on compensation for those who have been harmed by the flawed process of this outbreak investigation.
However, we also have to recognize that the illnesses caused by this strain of Salmonella saintpaul have not ended, and government health officials must continue to try aggressively to pinpoint the source. While there is tremendous speculation and growing evidence that tomatoes of any kind may not be the source, neither CDC nor FDA are willing to rule this out at this time.
At the same time, these agencies are not clinging to what may have been a mistaken first conclusion, but are also examining the possibility that a different food source may be causing the ongoing illnesses. Many media reports have cited certain chili peppers and cilantro as commodities of interest, but a wide range of other food products is also being studied. That is a proper step.
For the fresh produce supply chain, it is critical to note that neither CDC nor FDA have provided any consumer cautions about any other produce items. It would be unwise for industry to begin following speculation about these commodities as reason for any change in the marketplace, when CDC and FDA will clearly announce their concerns if they rise to that level. We advise all industry members to continue to review the specific advice on the CDC and FDA websites in making all product decisions. That advice can be summarized as follows:
-- FDA has published an extensive list of production regions from which all tomatoes can be freely sourced. These include production regions in both the United States and Mexico, and those areas are identified on the FDA website.
-- Consumers are advised to avoid any raw Roma, plum and red round tomatoes from areas that are not on the "cleared list." We know of no tomatoes from these regions that are now on the market, but supply chain partners should be sure of that in their own operations.
-- All cherry tomatoes, grape tomatoes and tomatoes with the vine still attached have been officially cleared by FDA and can also be consumed freely.
-- Neither FDA nor CDC have issued any consumer or industry advisories with regard to any other produce or food item, including chili peppers, cilantro or other commodities. We have full confidence that if these agencies determine that there is a substantive risk associated with any other commodity, from any particular source, they will issue such information immediately, and we will update you.
