No Illness Seen, But Irrigation Water May Have Been Contaminated

(CBS/AP) A popular brand of lettuce grown in California's Salinas Valley, the region at the center of a nationwide spinach scare, has been recalled over concerns about E. coli contamination.

The lettuce does not appear to have caused any illnesses, according to the Salinas-based Nunes Co. Inc.

Executives ordered the recall Sunday after learning that irrigation water may have been contaminated with E. coli, Tom Nunes said.

So far, company investigators have not found E. coli bacteria in the lettuce itself, Nunes said.

"We did some testing of some water from a secondary water source, not one of our primary water sources, and we did find some generic E. coli," Nunes said. "We have no evidence at this time that there is anything on the product, but we're just playing it safe."

"Food safety is number one in our company. We'd rather make a mistake and be overly careful than getting somebody sick," company president Tom Nunes Jr. said.

Another produce recall after contaminated spinach was linked to nearly 200 who became sick and three who died is likely to be painfully expensive for Salina-area growers and processors, reports Don Knapp of CBS station KPIX.

The recall comes amid other federal warnings that some brands of spinach, bottled carrot juice and recent shipments of beef could cause grave health risks — including paralysis, respiratory failure and death.

It covers green leaf lettuce under the Foxy brand that was purchased in grocery stores Oct. 3-6 in Arizona, California, Nevada, Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana. It was also sold to distributors in those states who may have sold it to restaurants or institutions.

The recalled lettuce was packaged as "Green Leaf 24 Count, waxed carton," and "Green Leaf 18 Count, cellophane sleeve, returnable carton." Packaging is stamped with lot code 6SL0024.

The company says it has located nearly all the suspect produce but it is still searching for 200 or 300 cartons of green leaf lettuce, reports Knapp.

FDA spokeswoman Julie Zawisza said the agency was aware of the voluntary recall but had no details.

"As a standard course of action, we would expect the firm to identify the source of the contamination and take steps to ... ensure that it doesn't happen again," Zawisza said in an e-mail.

It's unlikely that the bacteria in the lettuce fields share the source of the E. coli found in spinach, Nunes said.

"Apparently lettuce is more susceptible to contamination than other types of produce, so much so that the FDA started a lettuce safety initiative earlier this year to help companies improve safety standards and to notify the public of any problems as soon as possible," says CBS News Early Show's Dr. Mallika Marshall.

Pathogenic Escherichia coli bacteria, or E. coli, can proliferate in uncooked produce, raw milk, unpasteurized juice, contaminated water and meat.

"The common symptoms are nausea, fatigue, severe abdominal cramps, and diarrhea that can be bloody," says Marshall. "Most get better on their own within a week. Some people in rare cases, the very old or the very young, can go on to develop kidney failure. That can be deadly."

The recall at Nunes Co., a family-owned business with more than 20,000 acres of cropland in Arizona and California, comes days after federal agents searched two Salinas Valley produce companies connected to the spinach scare.

Epidemiologists warned consumers last week to stay away from some bottled carrot juice after a Florida woman was paralyzed and three people in Georgia experienced respiratory failure, apparently due to botulism poisoning.

On Friday, an Iowa company announced that it was recalling 5,200 pounds of ground beef suspected of having E. coli. The government said no illnesses have been reported from consumption of the beef.

The outbreaks have sparked demands to create a new federal agency in charge of food safety. Sens. Charles Schumer and Hillary Rodham Clinton, both New York Democrats, are sponsoring legislation authored by Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill., to create the unified Food Safety Agency.

"There's a high level of urgency in our industry, and we're being very proactive," Nunes said. "It's obviously based upon recent events in the produce industry and concern for customers. We just don't want anything to happen."

Consumers can help themselves, too, says Marshall.

"Wash your fruits and vegetables thoroughly with water. You don't need to use soap. You only want to drink pasteurized milk and juice. Separate your meats from your ready-to-eat foods so you don't get cross-contamination. Make sure you cook your beef to an internal temperature of 160 degrees Fahrenheit. Then, obviously, wash your hands frequently whenever you're handling food," she advises.