Tomato concerns subside among area diners, restaurants

Local restaurant owners, retailers and customers are seeing business return to normal following the scare about salmonella-infected tomatoes.

Since mid-April, tomatoes tainted with salmonella, a bacterium found in the intestinal tracts of certain animals, have led to 228 reported cases of salmonellosis nationwide, according to the Food and Drug Administration.

Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware are among 37 states that have been ruled out by the FDA as possible sources of the outbreak, and no cases of the illness have been reported in those three states.

Melissa McDermott, marketing specialist for Whole Foods Market in Philadelphia and New Jersey, said that although certain kinds of tomatoes had been removed from the shelves, the outbreak hasn't stopped its customers from juicing up their meals.

At the Whole Foods Market on 20th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue last week, a shopper who identified himself as Jeff, 35, plucked a pair of heirloom tomatoes off the center stand of the produce section.

"I can't live without them," he said.

The market's selection of tomatoes come from locations cleared by the FDA, such as California, Canada and Pennsylvania.

Local restaurants don't seem to have much trouble either. The White Dog Cafe, on Sansom Street near 34th, buys its produce from local sources, said owner Judy Wicks. She said the cafe doesn't use tomatoes in salads or entrees unless they are in season.

"The safest thing to do is not to eat tomatoes until they come into season," Wicks said.

Wicks said the outbreak doesn't pose a problem for a restaurant like the White Dog because food comes from small, local farms as opposed to big, industrial farms.

"I'm in favor of building our local food system," she said.

Unless they are from safe locations, tomatoes that should not be handled or eaten raw include red plum, red Roma, and red round tomatoes, according to the FDA.

Meanwhile, cherry tomatoes, grape tomatoes and tomatoes with the vine still attached have not been infected. Processed, or canned, tomatoes used in most spaghetti sauces and tomato juices are also safe.

The FDA continues to investigate the source of the infected tomatoes. *