WASHINGTON - For the first time since a salmonella outbreak began in April, the government said yesterday that at least some of the illnesses appeared to be caused by jalapeno peppers, and it warned those at greatest risk against eating them.
Federal health officials have been warning since early June against eating certain types of tomatoes, and they again refused to rule out the possibility that tomatoes may be responsible for the largest foodborne outbreak in at least a decade.
Tomato growers have complained for weeks that tomatoes are not the cause, and some state health officials suspect tomatoes aren't responsible because they have a limited shelf life and the number of illnesses keeps rising despite the nationwide warning.
The latest government advisory warns against eating jalapeno and serrano peppers, which officials said are often confused with jalapenos. The warning applies to infants, the elderly and those with impaired immune systems.
The new developments are likely to intensify criticism of the government food safety system, after a string of foodborne outbreaks and with the current investigation now in its second month without a clear culprit.
In a hastily scheduled conference call with reporters late yesterday afternoon, officials acknowledged that their investigation had shifted away from tomatoes and toward jalapenos.
"The strategy here is to aggressively pursue the tracebacks of jalapeno peppers," said Dr. David Acheson, associate commissioner for foods at the Food and Drug Administration. That means looking for contaminated jalapenos on farms, at processing plants and in distribution centers, he said.
The shift was prompted by new evidence, accumulated during interviews with those sickened by the Salmonella saintpaul strain since June. Many said they had eaten jalapenos, while a smaller number reported eating tomatoes.
Investigators have yet to find a contaminated tomato or jalapeno.
"We are clear that jalapeno peppers caused some of the illnesses in the outbreak. It is not clear they explain all of the illnesses," said Dr. Robert Tauxe, deputy director of foodborne diseases at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The acknowledgment that tomatoes are no longer the lone, lead suspect is likely to intensify criticism of the FDA and CDC.
Those federal agencies have been leading the investigation, which is being carried out in conjunction with health departments in Texas, New Mexico and other states.
