532490 Wed Jun 25 08:09:41 -0700 2008 48 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 3811783 Is it safe again to buy tomatoes? I need my fix! :) Wed Jun 25 08:09:42 -0700 2008 84784 food_eater79 1 3811963 This morning's Boston Globe reported that 5 additional cases of salmonella infections have been reported, bringing the total for MA to 17. The article is slightly confusing, since the additional cases were reported in late May - early June. However, I'm assuming the restriction is still in effect... http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2008/06/24/17_people_in_mass_sickened_by_salmonella_1214346473/ Wed Jun 25 08:54:55 -0700 2008 3811783 75332 Gio 1 3812052 I've done some googling, but I'm struggling to understand how you get salmonella in tomatoes. I've never heard of that before. Does anyone here know? Wed Jun 25 09:16:25 -0700 2008 3811783 110146 greedygirl 2 3812537 The contamination comes from handling and/or field application of sprays. A few years ago there was a major problem with salmonella on cantaloup. Apparently people are either not adequately washing their tomatoes or it may be that the tomatoes are treated to make them shiny and the nasties are under the protective coating. The tomatoes that have been safe to eat all along are grape tomatoes and tomatoes with stems attached (usually hydroponically grown), and I'm not absolutely certain about cherry tomatoes. There were three kinds that were pronounced safe but I'm only certain about grape and stemmed because those are the kind I normally buy, so for me there has been no impact. Wed Jun 25 11:08:20 -0700 2008 3812052 112096 Caroline1 3 3812904 so if I buy a bunch of tomatoes on the vine, wash them really well and peel them, I should be ok, right? Wed Jun 25 12:36:18 -0700 2008 3812537 175330 Halie 4 3812979 They say tomatoes on the vine are safe. Peeling and washing them doesn't seem as though it would make them any more safe. I would say that since they don't know the source, no one is gonna be willing to make that call. Use at your own risk I guess. But the risk doesn't seem very big if you follow the guidelines. I bought some tomatoes the other day. Ate them. I'm still alive. As I said, I'm in TO and there's been no reports in Ontario. DT Wed Jun 25 12:49:53 -0700 2008 3812904 11291 Davwud 4 3813046 Don't take my word for it. Try this: http://tinyurl.com/6nhsku I've been eating stemmed and grape tomatoes this whole time with no ill effect, and I don't peel. Just rinse under running water. Wed Jun 25 13:05:48 -0700 2008 3812904 112096 Caroline1 3 3814230 caroline - cherry tomatoes are fine as well. Wed Jun 25 19:47:08 -0700 2008 3812537 103920 goodhealthgourmet 3 3816189 Thanks Caroline. It's disturbing me that you can get food poisoning from one of my favourite foods. Luckily I'm in the UK so I don't have to worry (yet). Thu Jun 26 11:47:12 -0700 2008 3812537 110146 greedygirl 2 3813003 Produce can be infected with salmonella and e-coli through the water that is used in their production, among other sources. That's how it gets "in" the fruit. Wed Jun 25 12:54:09 -0700 2008 3812052 43893 C. Hamster 1 3812071 Both McD's and Moe's here in TO pulled tomatoes. As of Friday McD's has no tomatoes and as of last Wednesday, Moes has them back on the menu. 2TBOMK there have been no reported cases of sal up here. DT Wed Jun 25 09:21:07 -0700 2008 3811783 11291 Davwud 1 3812215 Yeah I'm in FL, gotta go grocery shopping today. I guess I'll see when I get there with the assumption that if theyre on the shelf they should be ok. Wed Jun 25 09:53:08 -0700 2008 3811783 84784 food_eater79 2 3814236 according to an article i read in today's paper, they think the contaminated tomatoes are from mexico AND florida - so be careful with locally grown tomatoes, foodeater. Wed Jun 25 19:48:45 -0700 2008 3812215 103920 goodhealthgourmet 3 3814590 According to what I have read, the ONLY places still under suspicion by the FDA are Mexico and south Florida. The FDA website has all the info about what states are cleared. I live in Mexico and have continued to buy and eat the dreaded plum tomatoes. In fact, I have not heard of one case of salmonella poisoning in Sinaloa, my state, which I believe is the biggest exporter of tomatoes in Mexico. The news here has been about the drastic economic impact this scare has had on the industry. Wed Jun 25 23:10:03 -0700 2008 3814236 98904 MazDee 4 3815657 Well I'm in Central FL, not quite south FL. The grocery store had all types of tomatoes on the shelf, but I'm just going to wait a couple more weeks before I buy. I could have asked the manager where the tomatoes were from, but it's not a huge deal. I can wait. Thu Jun 26 09:35:31 -0700 2008 3814590 84784 food_eater79 5 3817316 we just had dinner at a local turkish restaurant - tomatoes galore - and my nieces were talking about the tomato issue when our server walked over to the table. he looked at us and said, "don't worry, we get all our tomatoes from florida." i almost choked on my mouthful of salad [which was rife with florida tomatoes, of course]. he couldn't understand why i was staring at him in disbelief. Thu Jun 26 16:48:18 -0700 2008 3815657 103920 goodhealthgourmet 6 3817798 The counties currently shipping tomatoes from Florida are on FDA's cleared list http://www.fda.gov/oc/opacom/hottopics/tomatoes.html#outbreak and there is no evidence the contamination occurred in Florida. The rarity of the strain in association with tomatoes makes it likely the contamination is from a single source, but the way tomatoes are co-mingled and repacked, the source of the tomatoes is irrelevant, the source of the contamination is what is important. Thu Jun 26 20:01:23 -0700 2008 3817316 82964 NYCubsFan 7 3820388 well, since our server didn't tell us which county in florida the tomatoes were from [and i doubt anyone on the restaurant's staff would have known] , there was no way to be sure that they were safe. i'm just sayin. Fri Jun 27 15:31:39 -0700 2008 3817798 103920 goodhealthgourmet 8 3827525 Had they told you which county, would you have known if it was on the cleared list? My point is really that from what the FDA and CDC have said, if it even was tomatoes, the fact that they are from Florida, Mexico or anywhere else doesn't matter much. Since new cases continue to turn up after the alert and subsequent pulling of tomatoes from menus and shelves, the chances that contamination occurred somewhere along the supply chain (e.g., a distribution warehouse in Texas) is more likely if it even was tomatoes. Therefore, you could be getting them from California, Ohio or anywhere else, and they can still be traveling through the same supply chain and still be at risk. Mon Jun 30 14:27:53 -0700 2008 3820388 82964 NYCubsFan 9 3827944 "Had they told you which county, would you have known if it was on the cleared list?" ~~~~~~~~~ actually, i would have, but i know i'm in the minority of patrons who show up at the restaurant armed with the necessary information :) didn't really matter - i ate the tomatoes before he even said anything. i was just surprised that he made the statement with such confidence, clearly completely unaware that some florida tomatoes were still under suspicion. Mon Jun 30 16:49:22 -0700 2008 3827525 103920 goodhealthgourmet 1 3812931 I am curious about this as well. I need a BLT... I was at the store on Saturday, and they had tomatoes from Arkansas, touthing them as "safe", Ill probably wait another week or so. Wed Jun 25 12:40:59 -0700 2008 3811783 26725 swsidejim 1 3812942 Still in effect because they have not found the actual source. The assumption is that the salmonella is actually inside the tomato because washing has not helped and the stems being off allowed the bacteria to enter the inside of the tomato that way. http://www.fda.gov/oc/opacom/hottopics/tomatoes.html to find out which ones are suspect and where the safe ones come from. Wed Jun 25 12:42:09 -0700 2008 3811783 168212 PaulaT 2 3814223 Thanks for the link. I'm still leery, and I didn't buy any today. Maybe I'll start growing them in my yard! Wed Jun 25 19:45:23 -0700 2008 3812942 84784 food_eater79 3 3814239 not a bad idea. apparently some of the contaminated tomatoes are from your fair state of florida. thank goodness our local jersey tomatoes are safe...summer just wouldn't be the same without them. Wed Jun 25 19:50:19 -0700 2008 3814223 103920 goodhealthgourmet 1 3814888 Here in Boston, tomatoes didn't come off the grocery shelf at all. Although they were not available in most restaurants for about a week. The interesting thing to me, was that I started to read the labels of where the tomatoes were from. In my market, they come from Canada, which surprised me. Why are we importing tomatoes from a colder climate, when we should be buying locally? I mean, this is the Northeast, we must have some green house tomatoes of our own. Nothing against Canada, but we need to support the locals. Thu Jun 26 05:59:21 -0700 2008 3811783 15691 mcel215 2 3815700 mcel, there are some locally grown - in Maine. Backyard Beauties have been grown in Maine for the last few years. I'm pretty sure I've seen them in Stop & Shop and Roche Bros. http://www.boston.com/ae/food/articles/2007/03/28/maine_winter_treat_is_red_ripe_ready/ Thu Jun 26 09:43:37 -0700 2008 3814888 10532 LindaWhit 3 3822799 We've been buying Backyard Beauties (hydroponically grown in Maine) from J. Pace and Market Basket for about a year now. Sat Jun 28 17:48:02 -0700 2008 3815700 75332 Gio 4 3823058 I've bought them on occasion as well, and it's a treat to have a real, fresh tomato in the winter instead of the pink baseballs wrapped in cellophane (which I don't even look at). Sat Jun 28 20:15:51 -0700 2008 3822799 10532 LindaWhit 1 3820323 Now they're saying it may not be tomatoes. http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/06/27/salmonella.outbreak/index.html?eref=googletoolbar DT Fri Jun 27 15:02:49 -0700 2008 3811783 11291 Davwud 2 3820406 from the CNN link: "We continue to keep an open mind about the possible source of this outbreak, as does FDA." so if the outbreak turns out to be linked to something else, just how open-minded do the CDC & the FDA expect tomato growers to be about the damage this has done to their businesses? the food safety & quality control protocols in this country need a serious overhaul. Fri Jun 27 15:43:18 -0700 2008 3820323 103920 goodhealthgourmet 3 3820944 I was thinking the same thing. Who was it that said, "Now where do I go to get my reputation back"?? DT Fri Jun 27 19:44:05 -0700 2008 3820406 11291 Davwud 4 3822528 ray donovan - reagan's secretary of labor [acquitted of corruption charges]. if this turns out NOT to be tomato-related, my guess is that the tomato growers will try to sue someone... Sat Jun 28 15:16:20 -0700 2008 3820944 103920 goodhealthgourmet 5 3822548 And it could get really ugly. DT Sat Jun 28 15:25:47 -0700 2008 3822528 11291 Davwud 1 3822066 Wawa has begun putting tomatoes in their sandwiches again. They claim they have found a "safe source" I'm not sure I want to try them yet though. Sat Jun 28 11:20:19 -0700 2008 3811783 189169 ChrisOC 1 3822850 Florida tomato update 28 June: 1700 FDA tests in Mexico and Florida and other unnamed growing locations, inclusive from the fields to the packing facilities to the distributors, have all been negative for salmonella presence and have not yielded a scintilla of evidence to pinpoint the source of the 810 recognized salmonella cases since April 15. It has not been determined that the cause of the salmonella is tomatoes. Clearly a daunting problem. Sat Jun 28 18:23:59 -0700 2008 3811783 57170 Veggo 2 3823724 I guess no raw veggies for me til this is sorted out. Ridiculous. :( Although the parsley I used yesterday was fine. Sun Jun 29 08:37:56 -0700 2008 3822850 84784 food_eater79 3 3823735 I think your chances of dying in a car accident are far greater and you haven't stopped driving have you?? DT Sun Jun 29 08:41:36 -0700 2008 3823724 11291 Davwud 3 3824017 "I guess no raw veggies for me til this is sorted out." ~~~~~~~~ wow, really? that's pretty extreme...unless your immune system is compromised. i'm about as likely to give up raw veggies as i am to voluntarily stop breathing. Sun Jun 29 11:05:22 -0700 2008 3823724 103920 goodhealthgourmet 4 3824208 Yeah now that I think about it, it is kinda silly. Sun Jun 29 12:47:06 -0700 2008 3824017 84784 food_eater79 5 3824417 i didn't say it was silly...just overly cautious if you don't have a health condition that makes you potentially more susceptible to infection. Sun Jun 29 14:25:02 -0700 2008 3824208 103920 goodhealthgourmet 5 3824443 I see nothing silly about efforts to protect our food supply. Sun Jun 29 14:33:57 -0700 2008 3824208 57170 Veggo 6 3824461 veggo, the issue at hand was that food_eater was considering not eating any more raw veggies - for fear of getting sick - until the source of contamination is identified. Sun Jun 29 14:39:30 -0700 2008 3824443 103920 goodhealthgourmet 7 3824524 I hear you. This is a difficult environment in many respects. Paralysis is not an option. Self education and choice is available to almost all of us. It is not a perfect world.... Sun Jun 29 15:05:47 -0700 2008 3824461 57170 Veggo 1 3822963 For a good analysis, read this interview in Perishable Pundit. http://www.perishablepundit.com/index.php?date=06/24/08&pundit=1c Sat Jun 28 19:24:48 -0700 2008 3811783 71215 mlgb 2 3823001 Interesting, albeit a bit lengthly in making its point. But we are 4 weeks beyond the previous 6 week study periods of outbreaks, when the dust began to settle and answers emerged. We are 10 weeks into it, and frightenly clueless. Sat Jun 28 19:47:42 -0700 2008 3822963 57170 Veggo 1 3823990 Last blurb I heard on this matter is that they are not even certain the culprit is tomatoes any longer. Thank goodness the local grown tomatoes will be on the market soon. Sun Jun 29 10:48:27 -0700 2008 3811783 65193 EdwardAdams 2 3824569 It's quite likely that the culprit was associated with tomatoes, but it may be that tomato-containing items like guacamole and salsa are/were also contaminated. If you read the link I posted (it's long, I know), they mention how a particular field of tomatoes is harvested, with eventually the produce winding up in prepared items. "Tomatoes have a vibrant lifecycle. A harvest today may go to a primary source today, but a week later may go to secondary channel. In other tomato outbreaks I’ve studied, prime tomatoes were first shipped to key grocery stores, then, as the crop aged, they were shipped to different classes of trade. The same tomatoes, with the passage of time, can wind up in supermarket chains, restaurant chains, convenience stores, mom & pop restaurants, wholesalers, processors, etc. All the tomatoes, though, were harvested at the same time. If you don’t understand that and try and trace back, the investigation can get very confused, which is clearly illustrated in this case." Sun Jun 29 15:24:57 -0700 2008 3823990 71215 mlgb 1 3827613 I've seen tomatoes return to many of my local lunch places and grocery stores. I like to think they wouldn't serve or sell them if they weren't safe! Mon Jun 30 14:49:51 -0700 2008 3811783 112406 Chew on That 1 3828220 I thought this whole thing had blown over (or they were trying to place the blame elsewhere). I've eaten tomatoes a couple of times in the past week or so with no problems, but I went to Johnny Rockets for dinner tonight, and they still don't have them back. Use your discretion...get them from a place you trust, and you should be fine. Mon Jun 30 18:29:56 -0700 2008 3811783 204860 theferlyone