Federal health and regulatory officials warned consumers Friday not to eat romaine lettuce of any kind harvested from the Salinas Valley, one of California’s major agricultural regions, because it may be contaminated with a particularly dangerous type of E. coli bacteria that has sickened 40 people in 16 states.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration told consumers to throw away any romaine lettuce they may already have purchased. Restaurants should not serve it, stores should not sell it, and people should not buy it, if it was harvested from Salinas, a growing area in Northern California. It doesn’t matter if it is chopped, whole head, precut or part of a mix.
Most romaine lettuce products are now labeled with a harvest location showing where they were grown. Officials said to throw out lettuce if it doesn’t have a label specifying where it’s from.
The CDC suggests:
If you have romaine lettuce at home:
Look for a label showing where the romaine lettuce was grown. It may be printed on the package or on a sticker.
If the label says “Salinas” (whether alone or with the name of another location), don’t eat it, and throw it away.
If it isn’t labeled with a growing region, don’t eat it, and throw it away.
If you don’t know if the lettuce is romaine or whether a salad mix contains romaine, don’t eat it, and throw it away.
Wash and sanitize drawers or shelves in refrigerators where romaine lettuce was stored. Follow these five steps to clean your refrigerator.
If you are buying romaine lettuce at a store:
Look for a label showing where the romaine lettuce was grown. It may be printed on the package or on a sticker.
If the label says “Salinas” (whether alone or with the name of another location), don’t buy it.
If it isn’t labeled with a growing region, don’t buy it.
Restaurants and retailers should check the label on bags or boxes of romaine lettuce, or ask their suppliers about the source of their romaine lettuce.
Look for a label showing where the romaine lettuce was grown. It may be printed on the package or on a sticker.
If the label says “Salinas” (whether alone or with the name of another location), don’t sell or serve it.
If it isn’t labeled with a growing region, don’t sell or serve it.
Suppliers, distributors, and others in the supply chain should not ship or sell romaine harvested in Salinas, California.
Is from Salinas CA.
PSA:Andy boy romaine lettuce is made in Salinas Ca.