Check your fridge. Cauliflower, red leaf lettuce and green leaf lettuce sold in certain U.S. states and in Canada and Mexico have been added to a recalled produce list due to potential E. coli contamination.
The CDC traced the original wave of bacteria-tainted romaine lettuce to Adam Bros. Farming of Santa Maria, California. The source of the bacteria outbreak, which sickened many, seems to have been a reservoir on the company’s property that was used for field irrigation.
No cauliflower, red leaf lettuce or green leaf lettuce from Adam Bros. Farming has tested positive for E. coli. But Adam Bros. Farms is being extra cautious and asking customers to throw away or return those produce items.
“Adam Bros. Farming, Inc. feels a strong commitment to its customers and has worked for years to provide a safe and healthy food supply. Out of an abundance of caution, Adam Bros. Farming, Inc. is initiating this voluntary recall in cooperation with the FDA,” the company stated in a press release, adding that it has notified customers that the affected products “not be eaten, sold, or transferred.”
How do you know if your cauliflower or lettuce is affected?
The potentially tainted cauliflower was sold to wholesalers in Arizona, California, Illinois, Louisiana, Maryland, North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Canada and Tijuana, Mexico. Red and green leaf lettuce went to wholesalers in Colorado, Oregon, Texas, Pennsylvania, Washington and Canada. And just red leaf lettuce was distributed in Minnesota and Tijuana. The produce was harvested between Nov. 27-30, 2018.
No other products from Adam Bros. Farming, Inc. are being recalled at this time.
Fifty-nine people in the U.S. have fallen ill with food poisoning since the E. coli romaine outbreak. The romaine lettuce recall, which originally was for all romaine lettuce in the U.S., is now limited to romaine that came from Monterey, San Benito and Santa Barbara counties in California. Hydroponic- and greenhouse-grown romaine lettuce is also safe to eat.
If you don’t know where the romaine, cauliflower or red and green leaf lettuce you’re considering buying or eating came from, inquire with the store or don’t buy it, says the CDC.
While E. coli is usually not deadly in healthy adults, it can be more harmful to older, sick or young people. The most common symptoms of an E. coli infection are diarrhea, vomiting and nausea. They usually show up three to five days after the consumption of tainted food.