Open AccessShiga Toxin–Producing Escherichia coli (STEC) O157:H7 and Romaine Lettuce: Source Labeling, Prevention, and Business
Author(s) -
Gregory Astill,
Fred Kuchler,
Jessica E. Todd,
Elina T. Page
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
american journal of public health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.284
H-Index - 264
eISSN - 1541-0048
pISSN - 0090-0036
DOI - 10.2105/ajph.2019.305476
Subject(s) - outbreak , food and drug administration , escherichia coli , shiga toxin , food safety , geography , biology , business , agricultural science , food science , environmental health , medicine , virology , biochemistry , gene
From May to November most romaine lettuce shipments in the United States come from California's Central Coast region, whereas from December to April most come from the Yuma, Arizona, region. During 2017-2018, the 3 outbreaks of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) O157:H7 in US romaine lettuce all occurred at the tail end of a region's production season. During the fall 2018 outbreak, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommended that suppliers begin labeling romaine packaging so that consumers can identify the product's harvest region.We used publicly available data to show that labels may not avert many illnesses in future outbreaks but may reduce suppliers' financial losses and reduce food loss.Market data available during both 2018 outbreak investigations showed that there was no romaine production from one of the 2 regions when the first illness onset occurred. That is, at the beginning of an outbreak investigation, market data may allow the FDA to quickly rule out an entire production region as a source of contamination.