After four outbreaks in less than two years where likely contaminated romaine lettuce contained deadly E. coli O157: H7, the Food and Drug Administration has decided to turn to microbial testing for clues for the next year to try to figure out what’s happening.
Earlier this year, the agency announced microbiological testing for frozen berries. Frozen raspberries, blackberries, and strawberries were implicated “in recent decades” for viral infection outbreaks. But not since 2012 have raw agricultural commodities been subject to comprehensive sampling and testing. That’s when USDA’s Microbiological Data Program (MDP) ended.
The FDA reports it is now “conducting a small, focused assignment to collect samples of the raw agricultural commodity (RAC) romaine lettuce to test for Salmonella app and pathogenic Escherichia coli...”
The year-long testing program is set to run through November 2020. Testing for Shiga Toxin-producing E. coli or STECS includes the microbial hazards that are associated with romaine lettuce consumption.
The FDA will collect raw lettuce that is trimmed or washed in its natural form before processing. No fresh-cut processed romaine will be collected or analyzed. The agency explained it like this:
“Sampling of RAC romaine lettuce before it is commingled during fresh-cut processing or before preparation at point of service where it may be commingled with other produce enables FDA to quickly trace lettuce to the point of origin when samples test positive for the presence of a human pathogen.”
MDP
From 2002-2011, the the USDA’s Microbiological Data Program (MDP) conducted tests in 42 states on 120,887 samples of fruits and vegetables, including cantaloupe, celery, green onions, hot peppers, leaf lettuce, romaine lettuce, bagged lettuce, parsley, peanut butter, spinach, bagged spinach, alfalfa sprouts and tomatoes.
Romaine Outbreaks
An E. coli O157: H7 outbreak in late 2017 was linked to simply to leafy greens in the U.S, while it was “likely romaine” in Canada, according to investigators. Two 2018 E.coli outbreaks were linked to romaine, as was a fourth event that FDA covered up for six weeks this fall. The four E. coli outbreaks infected a total of 320 people. The outbreaks were notable for their high hospitalization rates. Five outbreak patients died.
