- What kind of illness does Salmonella cause?People who have eaten food contaminated with Salmonella often have fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. The bacterium can enter the bloodstream and cause more severe illness, although this rarely happens. Infection with Salmonella also may be more serious or fatal in young children, frail or elderly people, and people with weakened immune systems.
- What is Salmonella?Salmonella is a type of bacterium. The type of Salmonella causing illness in this outbreak, Salmonella Saintpaul, is relatively uncommon. Fruits and vegetables that come into contact with Salmonellamay become contaminated with it, causing illness if eaten. Salmonella lives in the intestinal tracts of some animals, and can live in soil and water for months. Once Salmonella has contaminated something, it can be spread from surface to surface. Fresh produce contaminated with Salmonella can spread the bacterium to the hands of a person who cuts the produce and to the cutting board on which the produce is sliced, for example.
- Has the warning against eating certain types of tomatoes been removed?The FDA has removed the warning to avoid certain types of tomatoes. At this time, there is no reason to believe that tomatoes currently on the market are contaminated with Salmonella Saintpaul. For example, tomatoes that were coming into season at the outset of the outbreak are extremely unlikely to still be in the supply chain. Consumers may resume enjoying any type of tomato, including the raw red plum, raw red Roma, and raw red round tomatoes that had been included in the now-removed warning.
- Why had the FDA warned against eating tomatoes during this outbreak?The first case-control study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) at the onset of this outbreak did indicate a strong association between the consumption of certain types of raw tomatoes and illness caused by Salmonella Saintpaul.
- Why is the FDA lifting the warning against certain types of tomatoes?Firms that had been producing tomatoes during the onset of the outbreak are no longer doing so, as part of their production cycle. It is very unlikely that any of the batches of tomatoes originally associated with the outbreak are still in the food-supply chain.
- Are jalapeño and serrano peppers being investigated as part of this outbreak?Recently, the CDC reported to the FDA that many, although not all, people who have become ill in this outbreak ate fresh jalapeño or serrano peppers or foods that contained them, such as some types of fresh salsa. Based on this information from the CDC, the FDA expanded its investigation to include jalapeños and serranos.
- Have any food samples been found that are contaminated with the outbreak strain, Salmonella Saintpaul?One of the jalapeño pepper samples FDA tested was a genetic match with the outbreak serotype, Salmonella Saintpaul. The discovery was the result of investigations over the past several weeks by FDA scientists and field investigators. The contaminated sample was obtained during an inspection of a produce distribution center in McAllen, TX. The jalapeños were grown in Mexico; however that does not mean that they were contaminated in Mexico. Fresh produce often changes hands many times in the supply chain from farm to table, and the contamination might have occurred at any point in the chain. The complexity of today’s food chain is among the challenges of tracing contaminated fresh produce back to its source. The FDA is continuing the search for the point in the supply chain at which the jalapeños became contaminated.
- Does the discovery of the contaminated jalapeños mean the source of the Salmonella Saintpaul outbreak has been found and that the outbreak is over?Although the outbreak appears to have peaked, it is ongoing. Cases of Salmonella Saintpaul continue to be reported, and FDA continues its investigation. Epidemiologic data to date suggest that the entire outbreak can not be explained by the jalapeño contamination found recently by investigators. However, the discovery of the contaminated jalapeño sample is an important development. FDA is tracing the path of the pepper through each point in its supply chain to search for the source of contamination, and sent an investigative team to regions of Mexico that supply the Texas distributor that had the contaminated jalapeños – one of several teams the FDA has dispatched in the U.S. and to Mexico during the outbreak.
- Should consumers avoid fresh jalapeño and serrano peppers or foods that contain them during this outbreak?At this time, the FDA advises that all consumers avoid raw jalapeño peppers and foods that contain them, such as some types of salsa and pico de gallo. FDA also advises that consumers who are especially vulnerable to infection, such as infants, the elderly, and people with weakened immune systems, avoid raw serrano peppers and foods that contain them at this time. Consumers are advisednot to wash, peel, or cook these kinds of raw peppers to try to get rid of Salmonella contamination that may be present. These actions are not likely to get rid of Salmonella, which is very hard to remove by conventional means, and might spread the bacterium to the environment; for example, to hands, sinks, cutting boards, knives, and other foods.
- What do jalapeño and serrano peppers look like?See the photos below.
Jalapeño Pepper
photo by Luis Solorzano, FDASerrano Pepper
photo by Luis Solorzano, FDA - Is it safe to eat canned jalapeño and serrano peppers or processed foods that contain them?Consumers may continue to enjoy canned jalapeño and serrano peppers processed in a commercial food-processing facility, or foods that contain them; for example, the canned processed jalapeños and processed salsas sold in grocery stores.
- What is the FDA doing to keep potentially contaminated jalapeño and serrano peppers out of the U.S. food supply?The FDA is working with a McAllen, TX, distribution facility to ensure, to the greatest extent possible, that contaminated jalapeño peppers do not remain in the marketplace. FDA also has detained and refused an entry of serrano peppers from Mexico in which Salmonella – but not the type linked to this outbreak – was detected.
In both cases, FDA investigators are conducting searches to find the points in the supply chains of the peppers at which the contamination occurred. The intensive investigations include sampling of products, from farms and importers to consumers’ tables, and all points in between.
Salmonella Saintpaul Outbreak Information
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