Fresh Spinach Declared Safe to Eat
Self-Regulation Called Insufficient To Avoid Outbreak
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Saturday, September 30, 2006
Federal food safety officials said fresh spinach is "as safe as it was before the outbreak," even though investigators have not determined the cause of a deadly E. coli outbreak.
FDA officials said yesterday that consumers should continue to avoid spinach recalled Sept. 14 by Natural Selection Foods LLC, a fresh produce processor based in San Juan Bautista, Calif. Four other companies have recalled spinach they got from Natural Selection.
But officials cleared spinach grown in the Salinas Valley, after warning consumers for the past week not to eat spinach from that area.
"Based on where we are at this point in the investigation, spinach is as safe as it was before this event," David Acheson, a top FDA food safety official, said yesterday.
"The outbreak seems to be winding down," said Howard Backer, acting public health officer for the state of California.
Food safety officials are considering ways the industry can prevent outbreaks, including more regulation.
The spinach recalled was sold in bags or plastic containers under more than 30 brands, including Dole, Ready Pac and Safeway O Organics and had "best if used by" dates of Aug. 17 through Oct. 1.
The latest outbreak, which has sickened 187 people and killed at least one in 26 states, is the 20th E. coli outbreak in leafy greens over the past 10 years and the ninth traced to the Salinas Valley. It is the second tied to spinach.
Though investigators have not found a specific source of E. coli contamination in any of the previous outbreaks, food safety officials suspect "there is a chronic cause of contamination in the Salinas Valley," said Kevin Reilly, deputy director of prevention services for the California Department of Health Services.
As a result, he cautioned that another outbreak was possible and joined Acheson in urging the fresh produce industry to come up with better practices to prevent contamination. FDA and California health officials regulate food processing plants, but produce growers largely police themselves and follow voluntary guidelines.
"We can't leave it at status quo," Reilly said. "The implementation of these practices hasn't worked to prevent outbreaks."
Acheson said food safety officials are considering all of their options, including new regulations for growers.
