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Outbreak of listeria in cantaloupe melons from Colorado farm has caused
at least 72 illnesses and up to 16 deaths so far * Associated Press in Washington
* guardian.co.uk, Thursday 29 September 2011 10.34 BST An outbreak of listeria in cantaloupe melons in the US may cause more
illness and deaths in coming weeks, say health officials.
So far, the outbreak has caused at least 72 illnesses and up to 16
deaths, in 18 states, making it the deadliest food outbreak in the
country in more than a decade. The Colorado farm where the potentially deadly cantaloupes were traced
to, Jensen Farms in Holly, says it shipped fruit to 25 states, and
people with illnesses have been discovered in several states that were
not on the shipping list. A spokeswoman for Jensen Farms said the company's product is often sold
and resold, so they do not always know where it ends up. "If it's not Jensen Farms, it's OK to eat," said Thomas Frieden,
director of the US Centres for Disease Control. "But if you can't
confirm it's not Jensen Farms, then it's best to throw it out." The recalled cantaloupes may be labelled "Colorado Grown," "Distributed
by Frontera Produce," "Jensenfarms.com" or "Sweet Rocky Fords" but not
every recalled cantaloupe is labelled with a sticker, the US Food and
Drug Administration said. The company said it shipped out more than
300,000 cases of cantaloupes that contained five to 15 melons each,
meaning the recall involved 1.5m to 4.5m pieces of fruit. Frieden and FDA commissioner Margaret Hamburg said that illnesses are
expected for weeks to come because the incubation period for listeria
can be a month or even longer. Jensen Farms last shipped cantaloupes on
10 September, and the shelf life is about two weeks. "We will see more
cases likely through October," Hamburg said. The FDA said Colorado health officials found listeria in cantaloupes
taken from grocers' and from a victim's home. Matching strains of the
disease were found on equipment and cantaloupe samples at Jensen Farms'
packing facility in Granada, Colorado. Sherri McGarry, a senior adviser in the FDA's office of foods, said the
agency is looking at the farm's water supply and possible animal
intrusions among other things in trying to figure out how the
cantaloupes became contaminated. Listeria bacteria grow in moist, muddy
conditions and often are carried by animals. The health officials said this is the first known outbreak of listeria
in cantaloupe. Listeria generally is found in processed meats and
unpasteurised milk and cheese, although there have been a growing number
of outbreaks in produce. Hamburg called the outbreak a surprise and said
the agencies were studying it closely to find out how it happened. Cantaloupe is often the source of other outbreaks, however. Frieden said
CDC had identified 10 other cantaloupe outbreaks in the last decade,
most of them salmonella. Listeria is more deadly than well-known pathogens like salmonella and E
coli, although those outbreaks generally cause many more illnesses. Listeria generally affects only the elderly, pregnant women and others
with compromised immune systems. The CDC said the median age of those
struck with illness is 78 and that one in five who contract the disease
can die from it. Symptoms include fever and muscle aches, often with
other gastrointestinal symptoms. Unlike many pathogens, listeria bacteria can grow at room temperatures
and even refrigerator temperatures. It is hardy and can linger long
after the source of the contamination is gone; health officials say
people who may have had the contaminated fruit in their kitchens should
clean and sanitise any surfaces it may have touched.
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