E. coli Outbreak in Romaine - 121 Now Ill, One Farm Identified for Alaska Cases, but FDA Still Investigating Entire Distribution Chain

There are now 121 cases of E. coli infection from romaine lettuce with 52 hospitalizations and one death. Cases have occurred in 25 different state throughout the country.

FDA has identified one farm linked to whole head romaine lettuce involved with cases in Alaska, but have not yet identified where the contamination occurred. "The FDA has identified one farm as the source of the whole-head romaine lettuce that sickened several people at a correctional facility in Alaska. However, the agency has not determined where in the supply chain the contamination occurred. The agency is examining all possibilities, including that contamination may have occurred at any point along the growing, harvesting, packaging, and distribution chain before reaching the Alaska correctional facility where it was served." The farm was identified as Harrison Farms of Yuma AZ.

FDA further states that harvesting of romaine lettuce from Yuma is done and product would not be past its shelf-life. "All of the lettuce in question from this farm was harvested during March 5-16 and is past its 21-day shelf life. Because the growing season in the Yuma region is at its end, the farm is not growing any lettuce at this time."

CDC Outbreak Update
https://www.cdc.gov/ecoli/2018/o157h7-04-18/index.html
Multistate Outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 Infections Linked to Romaine Lettuce
Posted May 2, 2018 2:30 PM EST

At A Glance
Case Count: 121   (https://www.cdc.gov/ecoli/2018/o157h7-04-18/epi.html)
States: 25    (https://www.cdc.gov/ecoli/2018/o157h7-04-18/map.html)
Deaths: 1
Hospitalizations: 52
Recall: No
What's New?
Twenty-three more ill people from 10 states were added to this investigation since the last update on April 27, 2018. One death was reported from California.
Three more states have reported ill people: Kentucky, Massachusetts, and Utah.
The most recent illness started on April 21, 2018. Illnesses that occurred in the last two to three weeks might not yet be reported because of the time between when a person becomes ill with E. coli and when the illness is reported to CDC.

Highlights

• Information collected to date indicates that romaine lettuce from the Yuma, Arizona growing region could be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7 and could make people sick. ◦For the latest information about the traceback investigation, visit the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) website.
• Advice to Consumers: ◦
• Do not eat or buy romaine lettuce unless you can confirm it is not from the Yuma, Arizona growing region.
• Product labels often do not identify growing regions; so, do not eat or buy romaine lettuce if you do not know where it was grown.
• This advice includes whole heads and hearts of romaine, chopped romaine, baby romaine, organic romaine, and salads and salad mixes containing romaine lettuce. If you do not know if the lettuce in a salad mix is romaine, do not eat it.
•  Advice to Restaurants and Retailers: 
• Do not serve or sell any romaine lettuce from the Yuma, Arizona growing region. This includes whole heads and hearts of romaine, chopped romaine, baby romaine, organic romaine, and salads and salad mixes containing romaine lettuce.
• Restaurants and retailers should ask their suppliers about the source of their romaine lettuce.
• CDC, public health and regulatory officials in several states, and the FDA are investigating a multistate outbreak of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli O157:H7 (E. coli O157:H7) infections.
• 121 people infected with the outbreak strain of E. coli O157:H7 have been reported from 25 states. 
• 52 people have been hospitalized, including 14 people who have developed a type of kidney failure called hemolytic uremic syndrome.
• One death was reported from California.
• This investigation is ongoing, and CDC will provide updates when more information is available.

FDA News Release

https://www.fda.gov/Food/RecallsOutbreaksEmergencies/Outbreaks/ucm604254.htm

FDA Investigating Multistate Outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 Infections Likely Linked to Romaine Lettuce from Yuma Growing Region

April 27, 2018

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, along with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and state and local partners, are investigating a multistate outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 illnesses linked to romaine lettuce from the Yuma growing region.

Update
The FDA is continuing to investigate illnesses related to chopped romaine lettuce from the Yuma growing region. We are working to identify multiple distribution channels that can explain the entirety of the nation-wide outbreak and are tracing back from multiple groupings of ill people located in diverse geographic areas.

The FDA has identified one farm as the source of the whole-head romaine lettuce that sickened several people at a correctional facility in Alaska. However, the agency has not determined where in the supply chain the contamination occurred. The agency is examining all possibilities, including that contamination may have occurred at any point along the growing, harvesting, packaging, and distribution chain before reaching the Alaska correctional facility where it was served.

All of the lettuce in question from this farm was harvested during March 5-16 and is past its 21-day shelf life. Because the growing season in the Yuma region is at its end, the farm is not growing any lettuce at this time.

Most of the illnesses in this outbreak are not linked to romaine lettuce from this farm. The agency is investigating dozens of other fields as potential sources of the chopped romaine lettuce and will share information as it becomes available.

To date, the FDA also has no evidence that other types of lettuce, or romaine lettuce grown outside of the Yuma growing region, are involved in this outbreak.

Fast Facts
The FDA is investigating a multistate outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 illnesses likely linked to romaine lettuce sourced from the winter growing areas in and around the Yuma region.
The CDC reports that 98 people in 22 states have become ill. These people reported becoming ill in the time period of March 13, 2018 to April 20, 2018. Sixty-four (96%) of 67 people interviewed reported eating romaine lettuce in the week before their illness started.

• The FDA has identified Harrison Farms of Yuma, Arizona, as the grower and sole source of the whole-head romaine lettuce that sickened several people in an Alaska correctional facility, but has not determined where in the supply chain the contamination occurred. The agency is examining all possibilities, including that contamination may have occurred at any point along the growing, harvesting, packaging, and distribution chain before reaching the Alaska correctional facility where it was served. 
• All of the lettuce in question from Harrison Farms was harvested during March 5-16 and is past its 21-day shelf life. Because the growing season in the Yuma region is at its end, the farm is not growing any lettuce at this time. 
• The remainder of illnesses in this outbreak are not linked to romaine lettuce from Harrison Farms. Most people reported eating a salad at a restaurant, and romaine lettuce was the only common ingredient identified among the salads eaten. The restaurants reported using bagged, chopped romaine lettuce to make salads. Traceback does not indicate that Harrison Farms is the source of the chopped romaine that sickened these people. The FDA is continuing to investigate the source of the chopped romaine lettuce that caused these illnesses and has identified dozens of other fields as possible sources.
• The FDA recommends that consumers ask grocers, restaurants, and other food service establishments where their romaine lettuce originated, and avoid any romaine lettuce, whether chopped, whole head or hearts, that originated from the Yuma growing region. If you cannot confirm the source of the romaine lettuce, do not buy it or eat it. If you have already purchased romaine lettuce or products containing romaine lettuce and cannot confirm the source, throw them away.
• The FDA is continuing to investigate this outbreak and will share more information as it becomes available.
• Consumers who have symptoms of STEC infection should contact their health care provider to report their symptoms and receive care. Although many infections resolve in 5-7 days, they can result in serious illness, including a potentially serious condition called hemolytic uremic syndrome.
• The current outbreak is not related to a recent multistate outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 infections from November to December 2017 linked to leafy greens consumption. People in the previous outbreak were infected with a different DNA fingerprint of E. coli O157:H7 bacteria.