Tomatoes: After $500 million in losses, the FDA appears wrong

The Food and Drug Administration may have been wrong about the source of the 11-week old salmonella outbreak.  With 1,700 samples collected and all shown to be negative for salmonella, they are now looking at jalapenos and other produce items commonly served with tomatoes as possible culprits.

David Acheson, FDA's associate commissioner for foods, said, "The tomato trail is still hot. It's just a question of whether other items are getting hotter."

This statement appears inconsistent with the data.  With nearly 1,000 people sickened since April 10, 2008, the rate has not decreased despite a clear reduction of tomato use across the country.  Former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson told CNN the investigation has indeed shifted to jalapenos and salsa ingredients.

Leaders in the industry are calling for a congressional investigation into the government's handling of the outbreak.  With loss estimates ranging from $100-$500 million, many farmers have been forced to plow their fields and leave crops to rot to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

"This is normally a huge week for the industry because everyone barbecues, but we're just not seeing that demand materialize," said Ed Beckman, president of the California Tomato Farmers. "We are slowly starting to see consumers recognize that California tomatoes are, in fact, safe. But for a grower to walk away from a $225,000 investment, there's a lot of pain."

Restaurant owner Tony Villegas says he has experimented with making pico de gallo without the tomatoes at his restaurant in Austin, Texas.  "It was just green and white," said Mr. Villegas. "It tasted really bad, unless you really like onions."

It is very likely that the source of the salmonella may never be found.  The Center for Science in the Public Interest and the Consumer Federation of America has called for a system that would allow authorities to track fruits and vegetables from the farm to the store.

After the E.coli outbreak from spinach in 2006, groups were already calling for changes in the way produce was tracked.  Nothing has been done yet, resulting in this crash in the tomato market.  More produce items are likely to be effected by it in the near future.

"The collateral damage inflicted on thousands of innocent producers in this country by FDA blanket 'advisories,' such as with spinach and tomatoes, cannot go unchallenged," said Western Growers President Tom Nassif. "Congress must investigate this matter and determine ways to avoid this in the future and make the innocent tomato growers, packers and shippers whole."

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