AP
Posted: 5:00 am
June 28, 2008
WASHINGTON - As salmonella cases continue to climb, the government is checking whether tainted tomatoes really are to blame for the record outbreak - or if the problem is with another ingredient, or a warehouse that is contaminating newly harvested tomatoes.
The widening outbreak - with 810 people confirmed sick - means whatever is making people ill could still be on the market, federal health officials warned yesterday.
Tomatoes remain the top suspect, stressed Food and Drug Administration food-safety chief Dr. David Acheson.
However, he said it is possible that tomatoes being harvested in states considered safe could be picking up salmonella germs in packing sheds, warehouses or other facilities under investigation.
"The source of contamination has been ongoing at least through early June, and we don't have any evidence that whatever the source is, it's been removed from the market," said Dr. Patricia Griffin of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
