Another Death Linked to Contaminated Melons

The Food and Drug Administration is warning people not to eat cantaloupes from a southeastern Colorado farm after investigators found a contaminated melon in a store, the first time Listeria has been linked to cantaloupe in the U.S.

Jensen Farms spokeswoman Amy Philpott said Thursday one of the farm's Rocky Ford cantaloupes tested positive for the bacteria, but more tests are needed to determine if it's the same strain linked to the outbreak.




"We were informed that there was a positive test, but we don't know if it was linked to the outbreak," Philpott said. She said she did not know the state or the store, or the agency that found it, and the recall was voluntary.

The tests were first reported by KMGH-TV .

The farm stopped harvesting on Monday when Colorado health officials issued an alert and notified retailers to remove the cantaloupes from shelves, Philpott said.

The farm provides about 40 percent of the area's cantaloupes, she said.


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Colorado Farm Says Listeria Found in Cantaloupe

A melon farm in Colorado has issued a recall of cantaloupe following a Listeria outbreak that has killed at least two people, sickened 22 and spread to several states.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the deaths from the outbreak were reported in Colorado and New Mexico, and state health departments said more deaths could be confirmed once testing comes back.

The CDC said the 22 people infected are in seven states: Colorado, Indiana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and West Virginia.


Jensen Farms spokeswoman Amy Philpott said Thursday that one of the Colorado farm's Rocky Ford cantaloupes tested positive for the bacteria, but more tests are needed to determine if it's the same strain linked to the outbreak. The farm provides about 40 percent of the area's cantaloupes, Philpott said.

In cooperation with the voluntary recall, Safeway Inc. said it was recalling jumbo cantaloupes supplied by Jensen Farms and sold in Colorado; Nebraska; Aztec and Farmington, N.M.; South Dakota and Wyoming between Aug. 30 and Sept. 6. Cantaloupes currently in Safeway stores are not from the Rocky Ford region, the grocery chain said.

It is first time the bacteria has been linked to cantaloupe in the U.S. The outbreak apparently originated in Rocky Ford, a fertile melon-growing area of Colorado that is a popular destination for tourists.

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