Romaine lettuce grown in Florida is safe to eat, FDA says

Florida-grown romaine lettuce is safe to eat after a week of uncertainty among health officials, according to the Florida Department of Agriculture.

The U.S. Food and Drug Association requested the removal of the leafy green from grocery store shelves on Nov. 20 after romaine lettuce led to an E.coli outbreak across multiple states and Canada. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention urged the public to avoid eating it, according to a press release sent out by the Florida Department of Agriculture.

On Tuesday, Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Adam Putnam declared romaine lettuce grown in Florida to be safe after speaking with the FDA. The administration determined that the tainted lettuce originated in California.

For Alachua County Public Schools, the national E. coli outbreak was not concerning because the romaine lettuce served in cafeterias is grown locally in The Family Garden farm, said Jackie Johnson, the school district’s spokesperson.

Florida is one of the primary growing regions for romaine lettuce in the winter, in addition to Arizona, Mexico and California’s Imperial Valley, according to the Associated Press. However, these regions had not yet shipped lettuce when the outbreak began.

The outbreak has had no fatalities but has affected 43 people in 12 states and 22 people in Canada. When purchasing lettuce, the Associated Press said to check the label for the harvest date and region.

 

• California (11)

• Connecticut (1)

• Illinois (2)

• Massachusetts (2)

• Maryland (1)

• Michigan (7)

• New Hampshire (2)

• New Jersey (9)

• New York (5)

• Ohio (1)

• Rhode Island (1)

• Wisconsin (1)

Nicole Manugas, an then-18-year-old UF neuroscience freshman, studies Wednesday while eating a salad at Designer Greens.