Romaine Lettuce Alert In MD As E.coli Linked To California Crop

MARYLAND — With dozens of people falling sick nationwide, including a few Maryland consumers, federal health officials are urging people to throw out any romaine lettuce grown in specific agricultural area of California. Multiple illnesses in an E.coli outbreak are tied to contaminated lettuce, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday.

After multiple illnesses across the country, the CDC is telling consumers not to eat, and retailers not to sell, crops from the area. Most romaine lettuce products are now labeled with a harvest location showing where they were grown.

The warning issued a week before Thanksgiving and nearly a year after an almost identical warning in 2018 says that consumers and retailers should stay away from any romaine lettuce harvested from the Salinas, California growing region.

The advice is intended for all types of lettuce products: whole heads of romaine, hearts of romaine, packages of pre-cut lettuce, salad mixes that contain romaine, including baby romaine, spring mix, and Caesar salad.

Anyone who has romaine lettuce in their homes should check the packaging to see if “Salinas” is listed on the label. If it does, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says to throw away the products and not eat them.

If a salad does not have the harvesting region listed on it, the agency’s advice is to throw it away.

The same packaging advice applies to anyone shopping for romaine lettuce.

In connection with the E.coli outbreak, a number of salad products were previously recalled for possible contamination. The recalled products have “use by” dates ranging from Oct. 29 to Nov. 1.

Related:

100K Pounds Of Salad Recalled Due To E.coli, MD Included

The recalled products were shipped to distribution locations in Alabama, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Virginia and Wisconsin.

A total of 40 people have become sick in the outbreak in 16 states, including three in Maryland.

Illnesses have been reported in Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, symptoms of E.coli infection vary from person to person but often include severe stomach cramps, diarrhea (often bloody), and vomiting.

“Some people may have a fever, which usually is not very high (less than 101˚F/38.5˚C),” the agency writes. “ Most people get better within 5 to 7 days. Some infections are very mild, but others are severe or even life-threatening.”

You can find more information about symptoms of E.coli infection via the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the 2018 outbreak, the tainted lettuce was ultimately traced back to California. After having to issue such a broad warning in 2018, the Food and Drug Administration said new lettuce products entering the market would be labeled with a harvest location and date moving forward.