Here is the very latest for you on the Romaine Lettuce recall. The salient FDA points are in red....with my comments in blue.
1) Three states-Michigan, Ohio and New York have reported 19 confirmed cases E.coli O145 infections (note: not E. coli O157:H7). The number of cases is likely under reported, in my opinion, as is usually the case in situations like these.
2) The romaine lettuce recalled was grown at the Yuma, Arizona farm from Andrew Smith, Co. with “use-by” dates of May 9 and May 10 which supplies Freshway Foods. My advice is to be careful with ALL romaine lettuce produce grown in AZ and adjacent areas until further notice. Also, I would not be surprised to learn that additional "use-by" dates are included in future recalls. If I may inject the 'political' in here, if it turns out that this Arizona farm situation has ANYTHING to do with politicos fomenting anti-Arizona propaganda and boycotting, I will be sure to report it to you immediately. In the meantime, I support and promote 'everything Arizona' despite my Yuma Farm warning here.
3) Freshway Foods' romaine lettuce has been implicated, but Vaughn Foods, who also received Yuma-grown lettuce has not been. In my opinion, be wary as indicated in 2) above. Note that it was not the farmer who noted the bacterial contamination, but the distributor Freshway Foods, did, and to their credit! That said, it is an onerous job for a mass distributor to "Q.C." ('quality control) everything they distribute. But when lives are at stake, it is more than good business to do so. Also note that it took the FDA to ferret out the farm-source of the contaminated romaine lettuce.
4) Most of the recall information includes the phrase "romaine lettuce products sold to wholesalers and food service outlets". The implication is that 'consumers' needn't be concerned, for no 'consumer products (bags of lettuce)' are included in this recall. This is very misleading and I urge you all to use your common sense and best judgment. Implicit in official FDA recalls is the assumption that restauranteurs, in-store food assemblers (think pre-made and packaged in-store salads, for instance) and salad bar preparers in restaurants and grocery stores ARE DOING THEIR JOB! The assumption is made that all 'preparers' immediately cull out all potentially affected food at all stages of preparation from receiving dock to point-of-sale. If only this were true. But I have followed countless recalls initiated by well-intentioned FDA officials, only to see recall mandates totally ignored on the retail level. Thus, I urge you to be ever vigilante in protecting the health of yourself and your loved ones. Read here and I will try to help you and go to the original sources yourselves, as well. You may sign up for my FREE NEWSLETTER to easily stay up-to-date on major health concerns by emailing me at: BarbaraKSexton@aol.com (Removal from the NEWSLETTER list is easy--just send along an email with 'NO' in the subject heading, no worries).
5) Do what I do with my family: I check for current recall news. I LOOK at the quality of the produce I am buying. I WASH everything I buy, even if it says 'already washed'. Please see my article "Reverend Barb's Guide To Safe Produce Healing":
http://dearoneshealingministry.blogspot.com/2010/05/reverend-barbs-guide-to-safe-produce.html
Federal and State Officials Confirm Link Between Bagged Romaine Lettuce and E. coli O145 Illness Outbreak
http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm211529.htm
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and its state health partners have confirmed that the strain of E. coli O145 detected by the New York State Public Health Laboratory, Wadsworth Center, in Albany, in an unopened bag of shredded romaine lettuce distributed by Freshway Foods, matches the outbreak strain of E. coli O145.
This finding comes as federal and state public health officials continue to investigate the food borne illness outbreak linked to certain romaine lettuce products sold to wholesalers and food service outlets.
To date, there have been 19 confirmed and additional unconfirmed cases of E. coli O145 infections in Michigan, Ohio, and New York. These illnesses include 12 individuals who have been hospitalized, and three with a potentially life threatening complication called hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). HUS is a serious condition in which the body’s blood-clotting mechanisms are altered, causing blocked circulation or bleeding in the brain or kidneys.
Last week, Freshway Foods of Sidney, Ohio1, voluntarily recalled certain romaine lettuce products because of the possible connection to the E.coli O145 food borne illness outbreak. The recalled shredded romaine lettuce had “best if used by” dates of May 12 or earlier.
Federal and state investigators are attempting to determine the point in the supply chain where the contamination occurred. Investigations are in progress at the Freshway Foods processing facility and at a farm in Yuma, Arizona which grew the romaine lettuce supplied to Freshway Foods during the time period of interest.
Symptoms of infection with harmful E. coli may range from none to mild diarrhea to severe complications. The acute symptoms include severe abdominal cramps and diarrhea, which may be bloody. Patients may progress to serious complications, such as kidney damage. The FDA and CDC encourage anyone who has experienced the symptoms following ingestion of romaine lettuce products described here to contact his or her health care provider immediately.
For more information:
On this outbreak of E. coli O145 see: http://www.cdc.gov/ecoli/2. http://www.cdc.gov/ecoli/
On food borne illness visit food safety.gov3. http://www.foodsafety.gov/
See previous FDA news releases on this topic.4 http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm211145.htm
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