The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), regulatory officials in several states, Canada, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are investigating a multistate outbreak of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli infections linked to romaine lettuce from the Central Coastal growing regions in northern and central California.
CDC is advising that U.S. consumers not eat and retailers and restaurants not serve or sell any romaine lettuce harvested from the Central Coastal growing regions of northern and central California. If you do not know where the romaine is from, the CDC advises it, do not eat it.
Romaine lettuce products will be labeled with a harvest location by region. It may take some time before these labels are available. If the romaine lettuce is not labeled with a harvest growing region, do not buy, serve, sell, or eat it, the CDC urges.
Check bags or boxes of romaine lettuce for a label indicating where the lettuce was harvested. Romaine lettuce labeled with a harvest region outside of the Central Coastal growing regions of northern and central California (such as the desert growing region near Yuma, the California desert growing region near Imperial County and Riverside County, the state of Florida, and Mexico) is not linked to this outbreak.
This advice includes all types or uses of romaine lettuce, such as whole heads of romaine, hearts of romaine, and bags and boxes of precut lettuce and salad mixes that contain romaine, including baby romaine, spring mix, and Caesar salad.
If you do not know if the lettuce is romaine or whether a salad mix contains romaine, the CDC urges, do not eat it and throw it away.
Hydroponically or greenhouse-grown romaine lettuce has not been linked to this outbreak.
The investigation is ongoing and CDC will update its advice as more information is available. More information can be found on the CDC website.
