Mobile UPI  |   About UPI  |   UPI en Español  |   UPI Arabic  |   UPIU  |   My Account
Search:
Go

FDA taps pepper as salmonella culprit

|
|
 
  
Published: July 21, 2008 at 7:23 PM
Advertisement

WASHINGTON, July 21 (UPI) -- U.S. health officials said Monday a jalapeno tainted with Salmonella saintpaul found at a packing plant in Texas came from a farm in Mexico.

David Acheson, U.S. Food and Drug Administration's associate commissioner for foods, called the discovery "a very important break" in leading investigators to believe jalapeno peppers are the source for the continuing salmonella outbreak, Healthday reported.

The FDA on Thursday gave the all-clear signal for fresh tomatoes, originally believed to be the outbreak's source.

Acheson said while the contaminated pepper was grown on a Mexican farm, "that does not mean that the pepper was contaminated in Mexico."

The FDA shared the information with the firm and a recall is under way, Acheson said.

"While this one sample doesn't give us the whole story, this genetic match is a very important break in the case," Acheson said. "This will ultimately, hopefully, allow us to pinpoint the source of the contamination, which has caused the outbreak."

A warning issued last week against eating either jalapeno or serrano peppers for people at risk of infection, including infants and the elderly, remains in effect.

Since April, 1,220 persons were reported infected with Salmonella saintpaul in 42 states, the District of Columbia, and Canada, the FDA said.

Topics: David Acheson
© 2008 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Any reproduction, republication, redistribution and/or modification of any UPI content is expressly prohibited without UPI's prior written consent.

Order reprints
  
Join the conversation
Most Popular Collections
Notable deaths of 2012 Scripps National Spelling Bee AmfAR Cinema Against AIDS gala
Indianapolis 500 Presidential Medal of Freedom Memorial Day around the nation
Additional Science News Stories
1 of 27
Snigdha Nandipati of San Diego wins Finals of the Scripps National Spelling Bee
View Caption
Snigdha Nandipati of San Diego, California watches confetti rain down as she wins the two-day Scripps National Spelling Bee championship, May 31, 2012, in National Harbor, Maryland. Nandipati successfully spelled the word .* guetapens *, meaning to lure or ambush. UPI/Mike Theiler
fark
If you would have listened, I said only ONE of us should rob the bank then we could both blame the...
Man's widow wins $3 million after suing her late husband's doctor for not making his heart threesome-proof....
Woman says mold killed her husband in the Panhandle. That certainly doesn't speak well for her Oven...
No, you can't get Adolf Hitler back. Not yours
"Traffic around here is as bad as two cows farking." That's a saying, right? Well, it is in Pittsburgh...
"She's such a fun person to be around, and she's always energetic - always has something fun to...