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Salmonella Tomatoes Have Hit New York City
By
John Del Signore
Published Jun 13, 2008
Modified Jun 13, 2008
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By
John Del Signore
Published Jun 13, 2008
Modified Jun 13, 2008
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An FDA official brandishes a bag of tomatoes being tested for salmonella. AP Photo/Kevork Djansezian
As if mocking the inadequacy of federal investigators, a ruthless army of salmonella-tainted tomatoes continues to sicken Americans, and the FDA seems utterly helpless to pinpoint the source. Frustrated officials all but admitted that the trail had run cold yesterday, and the agency's food safety chief, Dr. David Acheson, told reporters “maybe we were being too optimistic” in earlier statements about cracking the case.
New York City officials reported the city's first salmonella illness yesterday; it occurred sometime before June 1st. But the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released no details on the individual, and it’s unclear whether this contradicts earlier FDA assurances that New York tomatoes are safe, or if the resident was simply sickened by out-of-state tomatoes. The number of people made ill from the outbreak soared to 228 yesterday, as 61 previously unknown cases came to light. At least 25 people have now been hospitalized, and the FDA said that salmonella may have hastened a cancer patient’s death in Texas.
The FDA attributes the salmonella outbreak to uncooked red tomatoes of the plum, Roma, and round-grown varieties. Officials still maintain that cherry and grape tomatoes, tomatoes sold attached to the vine, and homegrown are safe for consumption; that determination is based on assurances from victims that they did not eat these varieties of tomatoes. And today the Times checks in on the FDA’s long overdue food-safety plan, which has left some lawmakers very underwhelmed.
Tagged
fast food
mcdonald's
outbreak
salmonella
tomato
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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