The U.S. Food and Drug Administration added Minnesota to its list of states that are not associated with the tomato-carried salmonella outbreak.
Earlier this week retailers and restaurants all around the country began pulling red plum, red Roma and round red tomatoes from their shelves as a result of the outbreak, which has affected as many as 145 people across the nation. No deaths have been linked with this outbreak.
Local grocery stores such as Cub Foods, Super One Foods and Mount Royal Fine Foods stopped selling the tomatoes in question after the FDA's initial recommendations this weekend. They could begin stocking Minnesota-grown tomatoes as soon as today.
In fact, some area grocery stores have been able to stock plum, Roma and round red tomatoes without interruption, but only from hydroponic growers considered safe, and in limited supply.
The FDA still is recommending that retailers and restaurants don't sell tomatoes that were harvested in regions that have not yet been cleared from the outbreak.
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All Minnesota-grown tomatoes as well as those grown in Alabama, Arkansas, California, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Mississippi, New York, Nebraska, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and West Virginia are now considered safe to eat, according to the FDA.
Additionally, cherry tomatoes, grape tomatoes and tomatoes with the vine still attached are considered safe to eat.
Other regions with tomato production that have been cleared by the FDA are Belgium, Canada, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Israel, the Netherlands and Puerto Rico.
