E. coli outbreak’s cause may stay mystery

WASHINGTON» More than seven weeks after the start of a massive E. coli illness outbreak from romaine lettuce that sickened 172 people and caused romaine sales to plummet 45 percent, the Food and Drug Administration says it has no idea who or what caused the contamination.

Agency investigators have not managed to trace the affected lettuce back to one farm, processor or distributor, FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said in an update Thursday. And with the affected lettuce now off shelves and the growing season over, there’s a chance the FDA may never crack the case.

The mystery has frustrated consumer advocates, who have called on the FDA to issue rules that would speed up future foodborne illness investigations. This outbreak, which began April 10, is the largest U.S. flareup of E. coli in a decade.

On Thursday, the FDA indicated it will consider a range of reforms to improve its ability to trace the source of future outbreaks.

“We want American consumers to be confident in the quality and safety of the lettuce they consume,” Gottlieb said in a statement. “In addition to working to identify the source and mode of contamination, we will also continue working after the outbreak to evaluate what happened and how lessons learned can be used to provide feedback to industry on best practices and areas to work on.”

The new details provide further insight into a devastating E. coli outbreak — and why finding the source of the contamination has proved so difficult. Most victims fell ill after eating prechopped salad mixes containing romaine from different farms.