Posted on 07/05/2008 2:50:15 PM PDT by kingattax
WASHINGTON - Investigators are seeing more signs that the salmonella outbreak blamed on tomatoes might have been caused by tainted jalapeno peppers and have begun collecting samples from restaurants and from the homes of those who have been sickened, according to health officials involved in the probe.
New interviews with those who became infected found that many had eaten jalapeno peppers, often in salsa served with Mexican food, according to two state health officials. So far, none of the jalapenos taken from restaurants and from the homes of those who became ill have tested positive for Salmonella saintpaul.
Echoing federal officials, who said this week that tomatoes remain the prime suspect, the health officials said that tomatoes cannot be ruled out as the cause of the outbreak. Investigators have been collecting samples of another possible suspect, cilantro, though the herb is less likely to be the source, said the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation is continuing.
The outbreak, which began 12 weeks ago, is believed to be the largest of its kind, and new cases continue to emerge. It has sickened more than 920 people across the country, up from 756 one week ago, and sent more than 110 to the hospital. In Maryland, 29 people have been confirmed to have the illness, which can cause nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, and, in severe cases, death.
In late May, investigators began focusing on tomatoes as the probable source of the outbreak. But they expanded their investigation last week, asking 100 labs around the country to help, because the number of new infections kept growing despite the short shelf life of tomatoes and warnings to avoid certain varieties.
(Excerpt) Read more at baltimoresun.com ...
Peter Piper picked a peck of putrid peppers - a peck of putrid peppers Peter Piper picked!
Any links to organic growing techniques again?
Given that the source is fecal contamination,
was not aware that peppers had an anus.
Like the anthrax attacks in 2001, round and round and
round our leaders go, ignoring the obvious.
Sal Monella. The hit man of germs.
Now that they’ve killed the tomato industry...
If this were true, I’d be dead.
Those growing fields in Mexico - do you think those owners give their field workers a toilet break???
And also, do you think the compassionate American farmowners give their illegal alien slaves a toilet break?
The real story here is who put the arm twist on the FDA to let the Mexicans off the hook?
Some of the growers here in Florida have been hit really hard. One talked of having to retrieve several tens-of-thousands of dollars worth of ripening tomatoes that had already been delivered to the buyers.
Slowly but surely the US Government is grinding to a halt. It's gotten so big and so bloated that it can't even do the things now that are legitimately its job to do.
My heart really goes out to the farmers that have been hurt so badly by this. Imagine waking up one morning and being told your entire harvest, that you've already paid to plant, grow, pick and deliver is tainted. Not only are you out the money you had invested in the crop, you've lost the profit and along with it in some cases, everything needed to get another crop in the ground and off to market.
This is another in a growing list of things government has done that have gone awry, not unlike the ethanol debacle.
I'm afraid were coming to the point where the only answer is a depression, deep enough and long enough to do to government what the voters have been unwilling to do. If it comes to that the voters will not blame themselves, but they're the one who put these goof balls in office over and over and over.
I think the end of the line just might come with an Obama election victory.
I predict that this whole episode is going to come down to some governmental agencies insisting that if they only had more money with which to operate, these things would not happen ... but if it did happen, they would be all over it in a heartbeat. Watch.
Now that our ever-more incompetent, politically correct, government has bankrupted a good portion of the tomato growers and packers and thrown thousands and thousands of people out of work they go “Uh - Oh!”
They will destroy the entire US agriculture business before they look at Mexican imports - the most likely source of contaminated produce.
Poisoning people that Americans refuse to poison!
Of course tomato, lettuce, pepper, and all fruit farmers will be bankrupt when they figure it out.
Hee hee hee
You got it.
That’s my user ID on Gardenweb lol.
pkapeckopickldpepprz
Maybe the afflicted people brought the salmonella with them from work ~ you know, the folks who use those funky dishrags to wipe up your counter.
Glad I grow my own peppers and most of the tomatoes I eat as well.
Baked salmonella loaf with jalapeno pepper sauce ! Yum!
Is it just my cynical imagination, or do we not always have similar crises before presidential elections?
Shortages of flu vaccine that left older folks standing in lines passing out from the heat (circa 2004) that disappeared with vaccine excess after the election?
I think I saw that Lou Dobbs was screaming for presidential impeachment due to the “tomato crisis”.
Of course tomato, lettuce, pepper, and all fruit farmers will be bankrupt when they figure it out.
Yup. What I can't figure out is how this could be transmitted so easily what with the food cleanliness hysteria we have in this country.
You mean the Mexican trucks which haul Crimigrants and food DONT have toliets?
Bingo!!! We have a winner...
Garden Ping.
At the end of May, right before this outbreak, I purchased a large container of salsa from Costco (I remember the name, but I'm not going to write it). It was to be for a party on 6-9-08, but I forgot about it. It was in the back corner of the fridge, so it was kept cold, just ignored.
A week after the party, I found the container very, very swollen - it was plastic, and noted that the expiration date was 6-30-08 and this was at least 14-18 days before that, and after the food poisoning had happened. I made a note to find the receipt and take it in. The next morning I put it on the counter and now it was REALLY swollen. So I turned to get a plastic bag to put it in, and it exploded - salsa all over my kitchen, my dog, my cat, my ceiling.
I called the company but they PROMISED me that it couldn't have been food poisoning because salsa is too acidic. Should I call some sort of government agency to report this? Could this be connected in some way?
YIKES
You know me and my total dislike of government involvement, but not only would I call the FDA, but I would also call USDA.
If it wasn’t salmonella it could very well have been botulism. I would call them both on Monday AND I would also call the health department in Richmond, or whatever agency deals with food here.
That’s some scary stuff, my friend. I can’t believe you never mentioned it before now.
We’ve been having some serious air quality issues because of wild fires in northeastern NC and southeastern VA, and I have been chalking up some illnesses among friends to that, BUT........
Now we’re leaning towards food poisoning as a cause.
Could a company spokesperson have lied to me?
To quote Hannah Montana (or my 10yo daughter) YATHANK?
It expanded (then exploded) BEFORE the expiration date and before you openned it and while under refrigeration. The problem was in the salsa, no question in my mind.
“Sal Monella. The hit man of germs.”
not to be confused with Salmon Ella, famous female coho charter captain, daughter of Lupine Ella, Chicago Cubs manager.
I believe most of the hot peppers consumed are grown in New Mexcio and California:
“California leads the United States in bell pepper production (9.25 million cwt worth $286 million), followed by Florida (4.05 million cwt worth $187 million). In 2006, 17.2 million cwt of bell peppers were grown, valued at nearly $586 million. New Mexico leads the nation in chili pepper production (2.5 million cwt worth $42 million), followed by California (1.7 million cwt worth $39 million). In 2006, 4.8 million cwt of chili peppers were grown, valued at nearly $102 million.
The tomatoes are not the problem, and the peppers are not the problem. The problem is in the wholesale willingness to import a third world nations' diseases. We don't only have problems increasing with Salmonella, but the Tuberculosis, both bovine and human, Brucellosis (we had this one licked in this country until we adopted open border policies with cattle), Tularemia, Diphtheria, amoebic abecess (full with anchovie paste lesions), and many more.
The Salmonella organism is quiet hardy. It can be carried from a steaming pile of human stool by flies or other insects to your food product. It can survive long periods of freezing and desication, possibly be spread by infected ice, dust, food, or sewage. That is why we in America have worked so hard to develope water treatment facilities. It is not always so in other countries.
I visited some friends at their home in Mexico a vew years back. When they went to the Liebertad and bought fruits and vegetables they brought them home and dropped them in a weak solution of betadine to soak....oranges, limes, apples, lettuce, etc. That is what they did because these diseases were indigenous and ubiquitous in that country. Now we are having it arrive here and decimate 1/2 billion dollar buinesses (tomato buisness) and refuse to see what is plain to see.
Political correctness and our unwillingness to say, "This disease and many others are being brought into this country by Mexicans who are required to have no health papers or document that they are not vectors of lethal disease, mostly because we don't want ot offemd Mexican government."
Folks need to wake up and smell the Salmonella.
Nail, meet hammer.
Not in my house or neighborhood --- everyone of them is grown in Virginia!
Just funnin' witchya. I've got 13 (so far) different varieties of chiles going and 9 sweet pepper varieties.
Please go back to DU.
I would call my local health department first...
Jalapeno leaves as TP--talk about a ring of fire!
I had two varieties of bell peppers growing in my garden until yesterday. That’s when I discovered that our friendly deer had returned to my garden and munched on peppers, tomatoes, beans and squash. They’re adorable, but geez, the darn eating machines are wearing out their welcome. We have an adorable doe and two fawns making the rounds of our property now, and we’re thinking to put in an electric fence to protect the veggies and flowers. Fortunately we bought a farm share this summer, so I have a great supply of fresh local produce. I was also looking foward to some of my own, but it isn’t looking good.
All I have to say about this is DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
Salmonella signs point to peppers and where did these peppers come from?????
I haven’t eaten Spinach since they had an issue nor a tomatoe I think I will look at the country it comes from before buying.
I’m afraid that even with such a depression, we wouldn’t get rid of even a significant portion of the bloated gov’t we’ve acquired.
Maybe you should look back over my comments for the last few years before you jump to conclusions. Not sure what I said that offended you but I apologize for whatever it was.
Got an easier and cheaper way.
Just put some posts in the ground, string twine between them then hang old cds and pantyhose stuffed with animal or human hair. Deodorant soap is also good.
Good idea - I’ll try that first. Unfortunately, the best sun (still limited) on our property is in the front, so I have to be sure it isn’t too, too ugly! I would think that a physical barrier should help, since deer don’t like to get their long legs tangled up or to be trapped in enclosed spaces.
The cds will also help deter the birds from going after your plants.
But to avoid the ugly of the pantyhose -— just spread hair and deodorant soap scrapings on the ground around the perimeter. Just remember to add more periodically, and especially after a rain.
And while I know it sound crude, human urine is also a major deer deterrent. We have a few bottles of it around here :)
I love our woodland critters - most of the time! Our boat has been taken over by another of our little friends. Mama wren set up housekeeping in the folds of the cover over our sailboat. We're eagerly awaiting her "empty nest" days. She's sitting on little fuzzy baby birds now. I suspect it's the same mama wren who built a nest in my fuchsia basket and then abandoned it when she didn't like me watering the flowers!
I noticed that a couple of the (expensive) commercial anti-deer formulas ae mainly made from a combination of eggs, garlic, and hot peppers. I thought of mixing up my own but I don't want to make something that smells too bad.
2 for 1 post (sorry, I’m tired and need to get up early in the morning :) )
Think free or die: hubby is the source of my “urine bottles”
Wideminded: remind me tomorrow to get you the recipe for the combo stuff that you can sprayon your plants. It doesn’t smell bad to us, the critters just don’t like it.
G’night folks
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