Tomatoe Scare resulting in a recall

reply to post by interestedalways

The second photo you posted is of Heirloom tomatoes we used to have these at work and they were very popular. But really everything else we have is genetically altered.

Nothing but the best for the rich and famous, last night I cooked for Stevie Nicks!

But anyway we used to use many old world style techniques but not anymore, we used to cook duck and submerge it in duck fat it's a of French way of persevering meat, and it was just yummy after a few months.

Originally posted by interestedalways

Consumers may continue to eat cherry tomatoes, grape tomatoes, tomatoes sold with the vine still attached and tomatoes grown at home, the FDA statement said.

Could that mean that the problem is with the processing after they are taken from the farmers?

If it was a problem with the transportation all tomatoes should be affected.

What other reason could it be for them to say that the ones with the vine are still attached are OK?

And why are only some varieties affected?

This is a little too strange for me, I usually do not "buy" conspiracy theories, but this is one of those cases where it sounds too suspicious.

The recall has hit us North of the Border as well.
www.thestar.com...

Add to the list the restaurant where I work..Kelsey's.
Half our menu has tomatoes in it in some form or another. This might shut us down for awhile.


edit to add..

Tim Hortons and Harvey's have joined restaurants across North America in removing tomatoes from their dishes, on the heels of a food poisoning scare in the United States.
This weekend, McDonald's restaurants in the U.S. removed tomatoes from many menu items, and numerous other chains in Canada have now done the same, including:

* Burger King
* Kelsey's
* Swiss Chalet
* Milestones

Many airlines have also removed tomatoes from their in-flight meals.

McDonald's restaurants in Canada stopped serving sliced tomatoes on the weekend after three varieties -- red plum, red roma and round red tomatoes -- were linked to a salmonella infection discovered in 16 U.S. states.

The restaurant chains say they have removed tomatoes as a precaution only, as no incidents of the outbreak have been found in Canada. However, Tim Hortons cites a supply issue, saying the American Food and Drug Administration's investigation into the outbreak has caused supply issues in the delivery chain.

Danya Proud, spokesperson for McDonald's in the U.S., said Monday that the company will continue putting grape tomatoes in salads since no illnesses have been linked to that variety.

On Saturday, the FDA alerted American consumers and restaurateurs of a nationwide outbreak of an uncommon type of Salmonella -- serotype Saintpaul -- linked to tomatoes, advising that their consumption should be limited.

Cherry tomatoes, tomatoes with the vine still attached and any grown at home are not included in the FDA warning. No Canadian tomatoes have been associated with the outbreak, according to a Canadian Food Inspection Agency's press release.

Since mid-April, there have been 145 reported cases of salmonellosis in the States caused by this particular strain. At least 23 related hospitalizations have been reported but no deaths have been linked to the outbreak.

Salmonella can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections, particularly in young children, elderly people and those who are sick. Symptoms include fever, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain

source..
www.sympatico.ca

[edit on 10-6-2008 by AccessDenied]

Cherry tomatoes are ok, and other types you buy need to be checked for "no broken skin" then wash very well. and you should be ok to eat them. Other wise you can also cook them to at least 160 f.

I have been following this too, and one thing that bugs me that I can't find is how they know it's the tomatoes if they can't track it?

As far as washing them goes to be safe, this is from a CNN article:

If I wash the tomatoes, are they safe?
No. The salmonella might be inside the tomato, so washing won’t help. However, as a general food safety practice, it’s a good idea to always wash your hands with soap and warm water before you handle any food.

How does it get INSIDE?

Also I noticed that cherry and grape tomatoes, tomatoes still on the vine, and home grown tomatoes are fine.

How would they know this?

Here's what I'm thinking. The tomatoes that seem to be a problem are the types that uasually just look ripe -meaning red, but still hard and not quite ripe as it should be. This is the reason I usually buy vine, cherry, and grape tomatoes in the off season, because they don't seem to be 'force rippened' as I call it. I wait for the in season to buy the kind that seem to be the problem. Could it be that it's actually what they do to the tomatoes to make them seem ripe that is causing the sickness??

Originally posted by ByTor420
Could it be that it's actually what they do to the tomatoes to make them seem ripe that is causing the sickness??

You could be right, I don't have any idea of how they do that "fast-forward ripening".

Look how quickly things change.

This report was from yesterday, June 9th.

The FDA has issued an updated warning advising consumers not to eat raw red tomatoes, raw red plum tomatoes, or raw red Roma tomatoes as these types may be responsible for the current outbreak of Salmonella serotype Saintpaul. According to the CDC, if infected, the symptoms include diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps lasting from 4 to 7 days.

www.associatedcontent.com...

Sounds like it can be pretty serious.

Most healthy people will recover on their own, but occasionally symptoms may be so severe that hospitalization is required. The most severe cases can result in the infection spreading to the bloodstream and internal organs. If this happens, patients can die unless immediately treated with antibiotics. Although rare, these complications are most often found in infants, the elderly and others with compromised immune systems. For the latest updates, check www.fda.gov.

From the FDA site.

Consumers should also be aware that raw tomatoes are often used in the preparation of fresh salsa, guacamole, and pico de gallo, are part of fillings for tortillas, and are used in other dishes.

www.fda.gov..../oc/opacom/hottopics/tomatoes.html

[edit on 10-6-2008 by interestedalways]

Originally posted by LLoyd45

Originally posted by sir_chancealot
If you have an actual whole tomato, NOT A SLICED ONE, I can tell you how to totally eliminate the salmonella bacterium on it.

WASH IT BEFORE EATING IT!

Now you know.

Or better yet.. Grow your own! That way you know what has or hasn't been used on it, who has handled it, and whether it's safe to eat.

BTW: Excellent point Sir Chancealot! Always wash any meat or vegetable products you purchase before preparing them.

[edit on 6/9/08 by LLoyd45]

Yeah, strange how "washing won't help", yet my tomatoes from my garden last year, where rabbits and all kinds of critters ran through, never made any of us sick. We ate them by the handfuls, sometimes right off the vine. MMMMMM.

On a side note: My son started calling me "Elmer Fudd" because I kept threatening to shoot this one rabbit. Somehow, I just never got around to it.

There is something seriously wrong with this tomato - salmonella out break...

A. That is a LOT of unwashed tomatoes being consumed - all of the sudden!
B. It is amazingly wide spread for a food poisoning outbreak... www.cdc.gov...
C. What, exactly, is Salmonella Saintpaul? And where did it get it's name?

The spread and suddenness of this bacterial contamination almost parallels the viral infection of the West Nile virus that spread across the US in just a few years. Another "where did this come from - nobody knows" made up name, not unlike the famous Norwalk virus.

Add these guys up and I'm starting to think that somebody is testing vectors with relatively safe, yet reported - illness causing biologicals to see how effectively they spread.

Looking at that CDC map of the states with reported Salmonella Saintpaul infections... if that was smallpox on/in the tomatoes, we'd be in a world of hurt!


Side note: the US has been awarding large contracts to mostly foreign and some domestic drug companies to produce various smallpox vaccines recently.

Is not Samonella only on meat? Were they exposed to meat somehow because I never heard of this before unless they crossbread a tomatoe with DNA from a bird.

I think X-Files TV series is right about a lot of things its all starting to happen for real a lot of what the TV series had to say.

Originally posted by The time lord
Is not Samonella only on meat? Were they exposed to meat somehow because I never heard of this before unless they crossbread a tomatoe with DNA from a bird.

I think X-Files TV series is right about a lot of things its all starting to happen for real a lot of what the TV series had to say.

Research it.

It's so easy these days with Firefox - highlight right click - Google search a word or more.
Turn on 'find as you type' and you could know more about salmonella than most doctors in a matter of minutes!

...sure beats sitting around making stuff up!

reply to post by Nemithesis


After a little search this is some of the pages I have found, I hope they are not related, but who knows.

A new clonal line of Salmonella Saintpaul having emerged and prevailed since 1999 in Aichi, Japan.

1984 Rajneeshee bioterror attack

There have been updates to this

1. Know Your Tomatoes
The FDA still doesn’t know how tomatoes were tainted with salmonella. But they are telling consumers to avoid the following RAW tomatoes: Roma, Red Plum and Round Red tomatoes. However, these same tomatoes are OK, if they from certain states. You can find that list here.

Still a mystery as to how this outbreak has occurred.

2. If I wash the tomatoes, are they safe?
No. The salmonella might be inside the tomato, so washing won’t help. However, as a general food safety practice, it’s a good idea to always wash your hands with soap and warm water before you handle any food.

This is standard operating procedure.

3. Am I safe if I just cook them?
The FDA doesn’t recommend this. Just stay away from the affected tomatoes for now. Better safe than sorry.

Wow first they were saying you could heat to 160 degrees now just to avoid them with a warning.

4. Eating out
Ask questions. Find out what steps the restaurant is taking to make keep patrons safe. Also, ask what kind of tomatoes they’re serving. If you’re really worried, just tell them to keep raw tomatoes out of your food altogether.
Consumer Tips

Conspiracy? Is there a cover up here? A black ops? A false flag? A terrorist incident?

Theses areas are NOT associated with the outbreak:
Alabama
Arkansas
California
Georgia
Hawaii
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Minnesota
Mississippi
New York
Nebraska
North Carolina
Ohio
Pennsylvania
South Carolina
Tennessee
Texas
West Virginia

Belgium
Canada
Dominican Republic
Guatemala
Israel
Netherlands
Puerto Rico
Salmonellosis Outbreak in Certain Types of Tomatoes
Updated: June 10, 2008

*edit to add* Here is the CDC map of the affected areas
States with persons with the outbreak strain of Salmonella Saintpaul, by state of residence.





[edit on 10-6-2008 by LDragonFire]

An update this afternoon from
www.ctv.ca

The tomatoes that have infected more than 167 Americans with a rare strain of salmonella probably came from Mexico, according to a representative from the New Mexico Department of Health.

A preliminary inquiry into salmonella illnesses in the state shows patients bought tomatoes from stores supplied by growers south of the U.S. border, said Deborah Busemeyer, communications director for the New Mexico health department.

"(Salmonella) patients in New Mexico bought tomatoes that came from Mexico," she told CTV.ca in a phone interview on Tuesday. "We saw a link between certain stores (and the people getting sick)."

New Mexico has seen 62 confirmed cases of the "Saintpaul" bacteria, more than most of the other 15 states where the strain has surfaced. Many more patients have fallen ill, although lab tests to confirm presence of salmonella are still pending.

While the first reported cases began in mid-April, New Mexico has seen "an increase of cases almost every day," Busemeyer said.

One third of the winter tomatoes shipped to the United States come from Mexico.

The Mexican embassy in the United States said Tuesday that the comments are "pure speculation." In an email sent to CTV.ca, spokesperson Ricardo Alday said Mexico is co-operating with the U.S. authorities investigating the problem and that the FDA has not determined that Mexican tomatoes are responsible.

"Even if it were to be determined that Mexican produce (is) the origin of any of these cases, the FDA has to determine if the problem came from the raw product itself or was acquired during the transportation, distribution, storage or cooking processes," Alday said.

"Mexico is absolutely committed to food safety and will keep doing everything at its reach to guarantee that all the relevant domestic and international laws are observed and complied with."

On Tuesday, a major Mexican tomato exporter stopped shipping to the United States pending the investigation's results.

The Sinaloa state Tomato Growers Association -- which ships almost half of Mexican tomatoes that come to Canada and the U.S. -- said the stoppage was just a precaution and that the tomatoes will be sold to domestic markets instead.

The American Food and Drug Administration issued a warning last weekend that consumers should avoid Roma, plum and red round tomatoes until the source of the outbreak is confirmed. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency quickly followed suit.

However, as of Tuesday, no Saintpaul-related illness had been discovered in Canada, CFIA spokesperson Alain Charette told CTV.ca.

According to the FDA, it is safe to eat tomatoes from Arkansas, California, Georgia, Hawaii, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Belgium, Canada, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Israel, Netherlands and Puerto Rico.

The FDA has not released details of its own investigation into the tomatoes and has not verified the results of New Mexico's preliminary inquiry.

Many Canadian restaurants have pulled tomatoes from their menu items as a precautionary measure. Some have blamed supply problems that have ensued from the scare.

Similar actions in the United States are hurting tomato growers, who have lost much of the restaurant market. In Canada, they're having the opposite effect -- only one per cent of Canadian tomatoes are sold to the food service industry, said Kristen Callow, the general manager of Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers.

The FDA has ruled out Canada as a source of the bacteria, so demand for Canadian tomatoes could increase, Callow told CTV.ca on Tuesday.

Grocery stores have continued to support homegrown produce despite the scare, she added.

The Saintpaul salmonella strain is not resistant to antibiotics. The FDA has not confirmed any deaths related to the outbreak.

I would have linked the full article instead of posting it, but long links never work for me.

By the end of next year, they want to pass a law requiring that all foods are irradiated. These scares are a way to frighten the public into submission.

Food poisioning has been around forever. It is part of the price for being alive. One guy on chemotherapy died from the tomatos. The rest just got sick as hell.

They are misdirecting you away from what you should fear, to what they want you to fear. It's alimentary my dear Watson!

I work for a food distribution and warehousing company that distributes to large food service companies and I have been told not to order anymore tomatoes and not to ship anymore tomatoes.

This should last for a few weeks until we can find another supplier, where the vegetable doesn't come from the US.

We have known about this since friday, June 6th.

Here is a link to historical outbreaks of salmonilla in the US. This happens every year. So why are they causing panic this year? Like I said, they want you to panic, so they can irradeate all of your food. See Codex Alimentarius for the full story.

If you look at the many outbreaks in the last couple of year covered in this article you will see that this outbreak is not any larger than some from a year or two ago.

foodconsumer.org...

The article also shows that the frogs can carry the disease and spread it via a water supply.

Interestingly in exception to the CDC's statements it expressly states that the salmonella can penetrate the tomato via the stem if the water is sprayed on the tomatos.

So why are tomatos with stems on safe? After all the salmonella can be on the outside.

It's like they knew which tomatos are innoculated and are testing to see how effectively people respond to their notification system.

Honestly I thought the folks who suggested that we were being experimented on were over the top until I read the report above. Now I guess I am one of them.

Okay, I heard from an offline source, that the tomato scare has made it to Canada. Someone find anything on that? I'm not relying on the source as the gospel, just something I'd heard.

reply to post by SpartanKingLeonidas


Spartan, I'm Canadian..see my posts above.

Originally posted by Enrikez
I work for a food distribution and warehousing company that distributes to large food service companies and I have been told not to order anymore tomatoes and not to ship anymore tomatoes.

This should last for a few weeks until we can find another supplier, where the vegetable doesn't come from the US.

We have known about this since friday, June 6th.

Oh gosh Enrikez...the tomatoes we get up north here are probably shipped through you. If this is going to last a few weeks, I can just see our restaurant closing up for that time. We just have far too many items with tomatoes as ingredients.
Either that or some of us will be taking a long vacation to support the employees that have been there for years..
Good grief..