Escherichia coli risk: salad recalls from stores in 20 states

Voluntary recall of products from sale affected more than 3000 heads of romaine lettuce distributed in stores in 20 states, writes Today.

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You might want to ditch the salad at this year's Thanksgiving dinner: the company announced a voluntary recall of romaine lettuce heads due to potential E.coli contamination.

6 November Tanimura & Antle Inc. announcedthat heads of romaine lettuce packed on October 15 and 16 were potentially contaminated with E. coli. In total, the manufacturer is recalling 3396 units from 20 states.

According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the recall is for "extra caution." It is based on "the results of a random sample analysis collected and analyzed by the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development as part of their standard sampling program."

“At Tanimura & Antle, food safety is our number one priority and the company prides itself on its preventative measures,” the FDA said in a press release. - It is unlikely that this product will remain in stores due to the shelf life of the lettuce and the number of days that have passed. If any of the packaged salads described above are in the possession of consumers, retailers or distributors, the product should be discarded and not consumed.”

On November 10, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that 12 people had been infected with the "outbreak" strain of E. coli in six states; five people were hospitalized. No deaths were reported. The CDC is investigating further to determine if anyone got sick from eating the said Tanimura & Antle romaine lettuce.

The salad is being recalled in 19 states and Puerto Rico. Among the states of Alaska, Oregon, California, Illinois, Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Indiana, Nebraska, Missouri, Tennessee, Wisconsin, New Mexico, South Carolina, North Carolina, Washington, Ohio, Virginia, Massachusetts.

Consumers with questions or concerns can call the Tanimura & Antle hotline at 877-827-7388, Monday through Friday, 8:00 am to 17:00 pm.

E. coli is a bacterium that can cause food poisoning and diarrhea. According to the FDA, "most healthy adults can make a full recovery within a week," but in some cases, especially older adults and young children, a form of kidney failure called hemolytic uremic syndrome may develop.

Why romaine lettuce is sensitive to E. coli

Salad recalls have occurred several times over the past few years. In November 2019, an outbreak of E. coli associated with romaine lettuce spread to at least 23 states, leading the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to specifically warn families against serving lettuce on Thanksgiving. In the fall of 2018, California romaine lettuce was recalled in various states.

A September 2020 report from the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases noted that leafy greens were associated with 40 outbreaks of disease due to the dangerous E. coli strain from 2009 to 2018. Of these 40 cases, 54% were associated with romaine lettuce.

On the subject: Why lettuce is increasingly becoming a cause of infection with E. coli.

The report did not give a clear reason why romaine lettuce was linked to so many E. coli outbreaks. Benjamin Chapman, a professor and food safety specialist at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, told NBC News that one of the biggest problems is how quickly contamination spreads.

“We know from earlier outbreaks that a small contamination in a field can lead to cross-contamination,” he said. “Once on the plant, contaminants are very difficult to remove, and while washing the produce helps, lettuce is usually eaten raw or undercooked, so any contaminants that end up on the plate end up in the intestines.”

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