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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported Thursday that the E. coli O157: H7 outbreak related to romaine lettuce is over. According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the latest deliveries of Romaine lettuce from the Yuma region were harvested on April 16, 2018 and the harvest season is over. Contaminated lettuce that made people sick in this epidemic should no longer be available
A total of 210 cases were reported in 36 states. Ninety-six people had to be hospitalized and five died – Arkansas, California, Minnesota (2) and New York
The outbreak also affected our northern neighbors with eight reported diseases in five provinces: Colombia British Columbia (1), Alberta (1), Saskatchewan (2), Ontario (3), and Quebec (1).
FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, MD, detailed the outbreak investigation on the same day as the statement:
The CDC and the state authorities of the Arizona continue to analyze samples taken in the Yuma area in early June and the first results are starting to be available. Several environmental samples of channel water in the area have been found to contain E. coli O157: H7 that genetically match the strain of bacteria that caused the outbreak. We have also identified additional strains of Shiga-toxin-producing E. coli in samples taken, but initial tests of these isolates indicate that they are different from the epidemic strain.
He goes on to say:
These initial positive samples represent another piece of the puzzle. There is still work to be done to determine how and why this strain of E. Coli O157: H7 could have entered this water plan and how that has led to the contamination of romaine lettuce from several farms. Together with our partners, we will continue to evaluate these results, their meanings, and determine what additional efforts could help us better understand this outbreak. We are committed to continuing to share updates on our progress.
Dr. Gottlieb also highlighted scientific advances, new information technologies, and laboratory techniques used to protect the public against epidemics
. This is not an effective way to determine if the number of outbreaks increases, decreases, remains stable or if our food becomes safer or not. Paradoxically, the number of outbreaks could increase since we are now able to identify problems that were previously invisible to us.
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