The Uglier Side of Lettuce
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After a frightful two-year stretch in 2005 and 2006 that included two Dole spinach/lettuce outbreaks due to E. coli O157:H7 contamination, the resurgence of ground beef as a leading vector in E. coli cases must have caused lettuce to feel a little left out. The last month, with the announcement of a major national outbreak linked to shredded lettuce and yesterday's announcement of a three-state outbreak also likely linked to lettuce, feels a bit like the wakening of a very mean jolly green giant.
Here's a brief look at E. coli O157:H7 outbreaks linked to lettuce and other leafy greens over the past decade (or a little longer):
- in October 2003, thirteen residents of a California retirement home were sickened, and two people died, after eating E. coli-contaminated, pre-washed spinach;
- in September 2003, nearly forty patrons of a California restaurant chain fell ill after eating salads prepared with bagged, pre-washed lettuce; and
- in July 2002, over fifty young women fell ill with E. coli O157:H7 at a dance camp after eating “pre-washed” lettuce, leaving several hospitalized and one with life-long kidney damage.
Here are a few more examples:
- Aug. 1993 E. coli O157:H7 outbreak linked to a salad bar; 53 reported cases in Washington State
- July 1995 Lettuce (leafy green; red; romaine) E. coli O157:H7; 70 reported cases in Montana
- Sept. 1995 Lettuce (romaine) E. coli O157:H7; 20 reported cases in Idaho
- Sept. 1995 Lettuce (iceberg) E. coli O157:H7; 30 reported cases in Maine
- Oct. 1995 Lettuce (iceberg; unconfirmed) E. coli O157:H7; 11 reported cases in Ohio
- May-June 1996 Lettuce (mesclun; red leaf) E. coli O157:H7; 61 reported cases in Connecticut, Illinois, and New York
- May 1998 Salad E. coli O157:H7; two reported cases in California
- Feb.-Mar. 1999 Lettuce (iceberg) E. coli O157:H7; 72 reported cases in Nebraska
- Apr. 2004 Spinach E. coli O157:H7; 16 reported cases in California
- Sep. 2005 Lettuce (romaine) E. coli O157:H7; 32 reported cases in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Oregon
But we all know that the list does not end there. E. coli O21:H19 nearly killed two women at a Wendy's in Utah. Also Taco Bell and Taco John's in late 2006.
2008 saw E. coli outbreaks linked to lettuce in Michigan and the State of Washington - Spinach too in Oregon.
One of the major problems with most beef in the US (and why it is commonly an e. coli vector) is the vastness of the processing and shipping system. Cows are raised all over, aggregated in feed lots (disease havens) and then butchered in factory-style plants. The meat is then shipped all over the country. That's a lot of potential areas for contamination and a nightmare for monitoring and tracking the source of an outbreak. I recommend finding a local farmer and buying your beef direct. Then you know where it was raised and where it was butchered.