FDA Commissioner Says Tainted Romaine Is from California
November 26, 2018 FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D., said in a tweet that the most recent E. coli outbreak likely stems from California-grown romaine. He doesn’t cite research, but rather points to timing of when the crop is grown.
Here’s Gottlieb’s tweet in full:
UPDATE ON OUTBREAK: The romaine implicated in the current outbreak is likely from California based on growing and harvesting patterns. The goal now is to withdraw the product that’s at risk of being contaminated from the market, and then re-stock the market…..
— Scott Gottlieb, M.D. (@SGottliebFDA) November 23, 2018
In two follow up tweets, Gottlieb also says FDA is working on a new labeling protocol that will allow crops grown in regions not implicated in outbreaks to continue selling.
….New romaine from different growing regions, including Florida and Arizona, will soon be harvested. We’re working with growers and distributors on labeling produce for location and harvest date and possibly other ways of informing consumers that the product is “post-purge”….
— Scott Gottlieb, M.D. (@SGottliebFDA) November 23, 2018
….We want to help unaffected growers get back into production and enable stores and consumers to re-stock. One goal we’re seeking is to make this type of labeling the new standard rather than a short-term fix; as a way to improve identification and traceability in the system.
— Scott Gottlieb, M.D. (@SGottliebFDA) November 23, 2018
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