The romaine lettuce that is implicated in the multistate E. coli O157:H7 outbreak may have been grown in California, according to a tweet posted by Dr. Scott Gottlieb, head of the FDA. The tweet states, “The romaine implicated in the current outbreak is likely from California based on growing and harvesting patterns. The goal now is to withdraw the product that’s at risk of being contaminated from the market, and then re-stock the market.”
He continues, “New romaine from different growing regions, including Florida and Arizona, will soon be harvested. We’re working with growers and distributors on labeling produce for location and harvest dates and possibly other ways of information consumers that the product is “post-purge.”
In this outbreak, as of the last update three days ago, 32 people in 11 states are sick. California has the most cases, with 10, following by Michigan with 7. Officials have warned the public not to eat any romaine lettuce at all, in any form, until they know more about where the lettuce came from.
Attorney Fred Pritzker, who has represented clients sickened with E. coli infections, said, “Even when you recover from this infection, there is still a risk you will develop a serious complication in the future.” Call 1-888-377-8900 for help.
Food safety attorney Fred Pritzker, who has represented many clients sickened in E. coli outbreaks, said, “It’s good that the FDA has zeroed in on the possible source of this outbreak. Now growers and producers need to focus on how to prevent this contamination from occurring in the first place.”
This outbreak is unusual in that this is the same strain of E. coli O157:H7 bacteria that sickened people in an outbreak one year ago. In that outbreak, just as this new one, people in both the U.S. and Canada are sick, but romaine lettuce is the single culprit in this outbreak. Last year, the outbreak was associated with leafy greens in the U.S. and romaine in Canada.
The symptoms of an E. coli infection include a mild fever, painful abdominal cramps, and diarrhea that is usually bloody or watery. If you have eaten romaine and have been ill with these symptoms, see your doctor. You could be part of this romaine lettuce E. coli outbreak.
