Washington, 28 July, 2008 - U.S. health officials urged consumers on Friday to avoid only raw jalapeno peppers from Mexico, narrowing an earlier warning against eating any fresh jalapenos amid an outbreak of salmonella illness.
The Food and Drug Administration now believes jalapeno and serrano peppers grown in the United States are not connected to the outbreak that has sickened more than 1,200 people, Dr. David Acheson, FDA associate commissioner for foods, told Reuters in an interview.
Investigators seeking the source of the outbreak have been probing clusters of illnesses in various locations.
"All the ones we have been looking at have been traced back to Mexico," Acheson said.
Officials are trying to pinpoint whether salmonella contamination came from a particular region in Mexico or a specific farm, he added.
The latest salmonella illness was reported to have occurred on July 10, bringing the total to 1,294, said Dr. Ian Williams of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Cases have been reported in 43 states, the District of Columbia and Canada, and 242 people have been hospitalized.