Honduran Melons Contaminated with Salmonella

Over the weekend grocers got the word to begin removing cantaloupes grown in southern Honduras off of store shelves.

And the FDA called on consumers to inquire from the store the source of the melons before eating them because of an outbreak of salmonella. 

So far 59 people have been sickened from 16 states and Canada.  14 had to be hospitalized. The Salmonella Litchfield strain was found to be the likely source of the bacterial contamination.

Salmonella is a bacterium that usually lives in the intestinal tract of animals.  Food can become contaminated when it comes in contact with waste water or workers who don’t wash their hands.

Symptoms include diarrhea and fever, nausea, cramping and vomiting. It can be fatal if the infection spreads from the intestines to the bloodstream.

The melons in question were shipped from Agropecuaria Montelibano, a melon-processing company in southern Honduras.

Yesterday, the President of Honduras Manuel Zelaya called the FDA warning “extreme and imprudent” since no laboratory had concluded that the Honduran melons were to blame.  He suggests that the shipment could have led to contamination since the rind contains the contamination and there has been no outbreak of salmonella in Honduras.

The Agropecuaria Montelibano melon-processing plant employs 5,000 people in the U.S.-bolstered industry. The president claims that his people will have to be financially compensated if the source of the contamination is found elsewhere.

So far 16 states included in the outbreak. California has the most cases at 10 also New York, New Jersey, Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Missouri, Illinois, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Washington, Oregon, Utah, Tennessee, Ohio and Wisconsin.

Last year a Peter Pan peanut butter recall was sparked nationwide because of Salmonella contamination.  Salmonella was linked to a sprout recall in six western states earlier this month and Salmonella is the reason that small pet turtles are banned for sale.  #