At least 20 people in Wisconsin have E. coli infections, linked to an outbreak in Maryland that has been traced to ready-to-eat romaine lettuce salads. Some officials, however, say a specific cause of the Wisconsin outbreak has not yet been determined.
Head food safety official at the Food and Drug Administration, Frank Yiannas, tweeted, urging the public to not consume any of the suspect salad. The agency is assisting with the outbreak investigation.
Ready Pac, the brand of the salads involved, is owned by Bonduelle Fresh Americas. Bonduelle posted a notice on its website that says government officials notified the company of only potential connections between E. coli patients in Maryland and the salads.
It said, in a press release:
"We have been contacted by the Maryland Dept. of Health with a preliminary report of seven E. coli O157:H7 illnesses potentially related to Ready Pac Foods Bistro Chicken Raised Without Antibiotics Caesar Salad 2/6.25oz (UPC# 7774527249) sold at a club retailer in the state of Maryland, with use-by dates of Oct. 31.
We test all of our leafy greens (including romaine) in the fields prior to harvest, including screening for E. coli O157:H7. During this time frame, we did not have any positive test results for E. coli O157:H7. We are working in partnership with the Maryland Department of Health and are working as quickly as possible to identify the possible root cause to reduce potential impacts to consumers.
Because the products identified are already significantly past their use-by dates, we are not taking any recall action, and it does not affect any product currently on store shelves. As always, please abide by any use-by dates, and do not consume any products that have
exceeded these dates. We will continue to monitor the situation very closely, and we will continue to make new information readily available."
However, the Maryland Department of Health is reporting that “testing of unopened salad purchased by one of the patients identified the presence of E. coli O157 in the romaine lettuce. In addition to Sam’s Club, these salad bowls are distributed to many other retailers.”
