WASHINGTON — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has cleared most Florida-grown tomatoes for sale and consumption, as investigators closed in on the source of the salmonella outbreak affecting at least 17 states.
The announcement was especially welcome news to growers in the Sunshine State, the No. 1 domestic supplier of tomatoes at this time of year. The FDA lifted restrictions in 19 Florida counties, and has listed them along with other tomato-growing states, territories and countries eliminated as possible sources of the bacteria.
Supermarkets, restaurant chains and other food retailers began implementing precautionary measures after the FDA issued a nationwide alert warning consumers not to eat raw red plum, Roma or round tomatoes, or products containing them, unless they come from sources known by the agency to be safe.
Retailers including Ralphs, Vons, Albertsons, Winn-Dixie, Sweetbay, Publix, Trader Joe's, Safeway, Supervalu, Wal-Mart, Wegmans and Whole Foods pulled listed tomatoes, while various restaurants including Applebee's, McDonald's, Chipotle Mexican Grill and Taco Bell stopped using them in their menu items.
“Traceback and supplementary information allows us to determine that product from those counties is not associated with this outbreak,” said FDA spokesman Arthur Whitmore. “Traceback work continues, but we have not yet traced back to a specific state, country or source.”
