Major United States restaurant chains report they have stopped using the types of raw tomatoes the US Food and Drug Administration believes are implicated in the multi-state outbreak of salmonellosis.
The Centers for Disease Control reports that 167 people in 17 states have been infected with a rare strain of salmonella, known as Saintpaul, since the first cases were detected in mid-April.
Only three persons infected with this strain of salmonella Saintpaul were identified in the country during the same period in 2007, the CDC reported June 9.
Federal and state food safety experts continue to investigate the outbreak in an attempt to learn the precise source of the contamination.
FDA has warned consumers to avoid large tomatoes, including Roma and round red, unless they are grown in areas known to be safe, have stems still attached, or are homegrown.
Samples of salmonella Saintpaul from all of the patients had identical genetic fingerprints, according to the CDC report.
The rare pathogen was identified by testing in state public health laboratories where the strain of salmonella was characterised.
The investigation into the source of the infection is ongoing.
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