Raw Tomato and Pepper Samonella Outbreak 2008
An outbreak of salmonella Saintpaul surfaced in New Mexico and Texas in April, 2008. Over the summer, it spread to 43 states, the District of Columbia, and Canada. As of mid-August, more than 1400 people were confirmed ill, and many more illnesses may have gone undetected. In early June, 2008 the CDC linked those illnesses to raw tomatoes and issued consumer warnings for raw tomatoes,including round red and roma tomatoes. As the outbreak went on, the advisory on tomatoes was lifted and an advisory issued for Mexican-grown raw jalapeno and serrano peppers. On July 30, the FDA confirmed the presence of salmonella Saintpaul at a farm in Mexico, both in irrigation water and on produce. The investigation is ongoing.
On August 1, 2008 Marler Clark filed suit on behalf of a Colorado man who became ill after eating raw peppers purchased from Wal-Mart in late June. Both the victim and the peppers he ate tested positive for salmonella saintpaul. The lawsuit was filed against Wal-Mart and its unknown supplier, “John Doe”.
For a complete time line of the outbreak and reference articles, visit Marler Clark’s case news page for this outbreak.