DeLauro Tells CDC, FDA to Clarify Consumer Advice Related to E. coli Outbreak

WASHINGTON, DC — Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-03) today wrote a letter to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Robert Redfield, M.D., and U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D., telling them to clarify consumer advice related to the E. coli outbreak linked to romaine lettuce—which has resulted in 53 infections, including 31 hospitalizations, across 16 states.

"I am alarmed by the inconsistent advice that your Agencies' have given to consumers," wrote DeLauro. "Consumers and families in my home state of Connecticut, and across the county, are confused as to whether they should avoid all romaine lettuce or just romaine lettuce that was grown in the Yuma, Arizona region. For an outbreak of this size and severity, that kind of confusion is simply unacceptable."

"At the time of this writing, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) information page for this outbreak offers two bullets of consumer advice," continued DeLauro. "The first bullet seems to suggest that consumers should avoid all romaine lettuce, while the second implicates only product sourced from the Yuma, Arizona growing region. I urge you to correct this confusion by immediately releasing clear and consistent guidance to consumers."

A copy of the full letter can be found here.