Romaine Lettuce E. Coli Outbreak Has Reached Massachusetts
The recent outbreak of E. coli linked to romaine lettuce has made its way into Massachusetts.
Massachusetts, along with Utah and Kentucky have been added to the list of states that have reported cases of the virus. The first death has also been reported by federal health officials, which was reported in California.
According to the Associated Press (h/t Fox 25 Boston), 121 people have been reported sick due to the outbreak spread over 25 states. The government has also reported that at least 52 people have been hospitalized, 14 of which had kidney failure. Health officials say that the terrible trend has been caused by romaine lettuce grown out of Yuma, Arizona, which happens to provide most of the romaine lettuce sold in the winter throughout the US.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a warning to all consumers Wednesday afternoon to pay close attention if you are buying romaine lettuce.
"Don’t eat or buy ANY romaine lettuce unless you can confirm it is not from the Yuma, Arizona growing region. This includes salads and salad mixes containing romaine lettuce," says the CDC.