Confused consumers question tomato safety

Awidespread outbreak of salmonella food poisoning linked to raw tomatoes in the United States is creating confusion and chaos for consumers in Canada who are questioning whether the products available here are safe. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned consumers over the weekend to avoid certain types of tomatoes that may have been tainted with salmonella bacteria. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency said it doesn't believe the problem has spread here and said tomatoes on sale in Canada are safe to eat. "We don't see the outbreak that's occurring in the U.S. at this point," said Garfield Balsom, recall specialist at the CFIA. But while several major restaurants and fast food chains in Canada, including Tim Hortons, Subway and McDonald's, have announced they are pre-emptively removing all raw tomatoes from their menus until they can guarantee a safe supply, other restaurants and grocery stores have no plans to change the way they do business until Canadian health officials issue a warning. The Globe and Mail "We didn't have anyone ask for 'no tomatoes,' " said Tawfik Shehata, chef at Toronto's Vertical Restaurant, who intends to keep tomatoes on the menu. At the same time, St. Michael's Hospital has sent back all of the tomatoes that came from the United States. The hospital is only using domestic product for the time being, according to spokeswoman Julie Saccone. "We are going to continue to use the Canadian tomatoes until the situation is resolved," Ms. Saccone said. Boston Pizza announced yesterday that it will not serve raw tomatoes in any of its Canadian restaurants until the government clarifies the exact scope and source of the salmonella problem. The conflicting actions regarding the use of tomatoes has led many Canadians to lose confidence in quality and safety, despite the fact no problems have been identified here, said Ron Lemaire, executive vice-president of the Canadian Produce Marketing Association. "We're seeing some consumers questioning which tomatoes should they be eating, whether they should be eating only Canadian tomatoes or tomatoes still from Florida," Mr. Lemaire said. "Consumers are asking 'Where are these tomatoes from?' " Mr. Balsom said the fast food outlets and restaurants that have stopped using tomatoes, a list that also includes Burger King, Kelsey's, Pizza Hut and Swiss Chalet, are free to do so, but that the move may have created more problems for Canadian consumers. "Certainly when you get large chains taking action, of course there are questions being asked," he said. "Hopefully, we can clarify that with the facts with as much information as possible." Part of the reason people are confused is because Canadian officials don't seem to have properly communicated the extent of the problem or explained why a warning hasn't been issued for tomatoes sold in Canada, according to Bruce Cran, president of the Consumers' Association of Canada. "[There's] almost total confusion from what I can see," Mr. Cran said. "There's certainly a lack of information available." U.S. Consumers have been warned not to eat raw red plum, red Roma and red round tomatoes, or products containing those tomatoes, while cherry and grape tomatoes, as well as those sold with the vine attached or grown at home, are considered safe. Restaurants are reporting that the price for tomatoes classified as safe has increased substantially in the wake of the U.S. cases of food poisoning. "The price has gone way up," said Jollan Cody, kitchen manager at Shillelagh's Pub in Calgary. In many cases, restaurants say the price for tomatoes has doubled. One restaurant said it will try to weather the storm before it considers raising prices. "I think we're trying to ride it out for a while to see if there are any changes or if this is long term," Mr. Shehata said. "If this is long term, we may have to adjust."