EON

Pepper Was Grown In Mexico And Stored In Texas Warehouse

Texas- After many weeks of frustrated searching and elimination there has finally been a positive result in a test of jalapeno peppers grown in Mexico.

The presence of the St. Paul strain of Salmonella on the jalapeno pepper tested in a Texas storage warehouse is the first confirmed source material found so far in the current battle against the rampant salmonella outbreak.

The outbreak of Salmonella has gripped the nation since April, and has made over 1,200 people sick in 44 states and Canada.

The test performed on the hot jalapeno pepper is the first to show a positive result for salmonella in all the testing of fruits, vegetables and produce.

At first tomatoes were suspected, and then finally rules out late last week.

Their inclusion has caused serious damage to the tomato industry in the South and SE American regions, as well as making many growers wind up with rotting unusable tomatoes stuck in warehouses.

The FDA still believes that early on that tomatoes may have been a source for the Salmonella, but finding that a jalapeno pepper has the germ present on its surface gives health investigators and officials a place to start.