WASHINGTON — As salmonella cases continue to climb, the government is checking whether tainted tomatoes really are to blame for the record outbreak — or whether the problem is with another ingredient, or a warehouse that is contaminating newly harvested tomatoes.
The widening outbreak, with 810 people confirmed ill, means whatever is making people sick could still be on the market, federal health officials warned Friday.
Tomatoes remain the top suspect and the advice on which ones consumers should avoid hasn’t changed, stressed Food and Drug Administration food safety chief Dr. David Acheson.
However, he said it is possible that tomatoes being harvested in states considered safe could be picking up salmonella germs in packing sheds, warehouses or other facilities under investigation.
Most worrisome, the latest victim became sick June 15 — long after the outbreak began April 10 and weeks after government warnings stripped supermarkets and restaurants of many tomatoes.
Disease detectives at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta are double-checking their probes just in case some other type of produce is really the culprit.
“We have also kept an open mind about other possibilities and are looking into other ingredients,” said Dr. Patricia Griffin of the CDC.
She wouldn’t identify other potential suspects.
The outbreak’s sheer scope — with illnesses being reported in 36 states and Washington, D.C. — and length make it unlikely that a single farm will be the culprit, Acheson acknowledged Friday.
