June 23, 2008

 

FDA CONTINUES SALMONELLA TRACEBACK

Updated June 26, 2008

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is continuing its traceback to determine the source of an outbreak of salmonella saintpaul associated with certain fresh tomatoes.

On June 25, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that the number of confirmed cases of salmonella saintpaul rose to 707, spread over 34 states.

The FDA said earlier that these Florida counties were not associated with the outbreak: Jackson, Gadsden, Leon, Jefferson, Madison, Suwannee, Hamilton, Hillsborough, Polk, Manatee, Hardee, Desoto, Sarasota, Highlands, Pasco, Sumter, Citrus, Hernando and Charlotte. Growers in the cleared areas are to provide a certificate issued by the state with each shipment of tomatoes verifying they were harvested after May 1.

Tomatoes grown in certain parts of Mexico and South Florida and harvested before May 1, however, have not been ruled out as a potential cause of salmonella-related illnesses.

FFVA has been receiving updates from FDA and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and is working with other industry groups to help re-establish buyer and consumer confidence, including making ourselves available to the media to help prevent the spread of misinformation.

Additional resources:

Florida Tomato Committee

Produce Marketing Association

United Fresh

FDA

CDC

Fla. Dept. of Agriculture and Consumer Services

ALSO IN THIS WEEK'S RAP-UP

(Members-Only articles are indicated in bold.)

FDA CONTINUES SALMONELLA TRACEBACK

MASON SMOAK DIES IN PLANE CRASH

CRIST SIGNS IMPORTANT GREENBELT BILL

LAKE OKEECHOBEE SERVICE AREA WATER USE PERMIT RENEWAL PROCESS BEGINS

FARM BILL PROCESS FINALLY COMPLETE

ERC ADOPTS DIESEL IDLING RULE


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THE FOLLOWING UPDATED LIST IS TAKEN FROM THE FDA'S WEB SITE, http://www.fda.gov/oc/opacom/hottopics/tomatoes.html. Updated 6/25/08/

Areas that HAVE NOT BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH THE OUTBREAK:

Alabama
Alaska
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida (counties of: Jackson, Gadsden, Leon, Jefferson, Madison, Suwannee, Hamilton, Hillsborough, Polk, Manatee, Hardee, DeSoto, Sarasota, Highlands, Pasco, Sumter, Citrus, Hernando, Charlotte)*
Georgia
Hawaii
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Nevada New!
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
Nebraska                                                                     
North Carolina
Ohio
Oklahoma
Pennsylvania
South Carolina
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Baja California (Norte), Mexico**
Belgium
Canada
Dominican Republic
Guatemala
Israel
Netherlands
Puerto Rico

* Shipments of tomatoes harvested in these counties are acceptable with a certificate issued by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

** Product lots of tomatoes harvested in this State in Mexico are allowed export into the U.S. with a certificate issued by the Secretaria de Fomento Agropecuario del Gobierno del Estado de Baja California (Agency).