AP
Last updated: 7:21 am
July 18, 2008
Posted: 3:33 am
July 18, 2008
WASHINGTON - It's OK to eat all kinds of tomatoes again, the government declared yesterday - lifting its salmonella warning on the summer favorites amid signs the record outbreak, while not over, may finally be slowing.
But federal health officials maintained a warning on hot peppers, saying people most at risk of salmonella - including the elderly and people with weak immune systems - should avoid fresh jalapenos and serranos, and dishes like salsa that contain them.
Investigators still don't know what caused the salmonella outbreak, which now has sickened 1,220 people in 42 states.
But yesterday's move, coming as the tomato industry estimates its losses at more than $100 million, doesn't mean that tomatoes harvested in the spring have been cleared.
It just means that the tomatoes now in fields and stores are safe to eat, said Food and Drug Administration food-safety chief Dr. David Acheson.
