The good news is that ketchup is not affected. Nor is spaghetti or pizza sauce.

The bad news: You probably won’t find fresh salsa or sliced tomatoes on a cheeseburger in your neighborhood restaurant — at least for another day or so.

And check the source before putting fresh tomatoes in your salad. The likelihood that they will make you sick is fairly low, but it only takes a few bad tomatoes to put the entire world’s crop on the suspect list. And for now, the Food and Drug Administration is finding it easier to tell you which kinds of tomatoes are probably safe to eat than to point out which are not.

The risk is an uncommon bacteria strain known as salmonella saintpaul. With 167 cases reported nationwide, including 23 hospitalizations, the FDA sent out a warning while it tries to find the source of the tainted tomatoes. Washington has had one illness reported so far.

Washing the tomatoes won’t necessarily take care of the problem, though cooked tomatoes are OK, according to Joanne Lynn, food safety program lead for Skagit County Public Health.

“It’s the raw, refrigerated product that we’re concerned about,” she said.

“The public health message is: Do not eat raw Roma tomatoes, red plum or the round red tomatoes,” Lynn said. “(Consumers) need to know that cherry tomatoes, grape tomatoes and tomatoes still on the vine are all considered safe.”

There’s now a list on the FDA Web site of tomato-producing states and countries where there have been no reports of problems so far. But two of the biggest providers — Florida and Mexico — were not cleared as of Tuesday night.

Though the FDA didn’t issue a formal recall, many area restaurants — from Burger King to El Cazador to The Edison — simply pulled tomatoes off the menu rather than figure out which might be OK.

Grocery stores were being a bit more selective.

The Bellingham-based Brown & Cole chain started pulling tomatoes Sunday after receiving the initial warning advisories, said spokeswoman Sue Cole. By Tuesday afternoon, the only tomatoes being sold at the Food Pavilion in Mount Vernon were those with vines attached.

“We can guarantee the tomatoes that we sell in our stores — Food Pavilion and Cost Cutter — are safe for human consumption,” Cole said. “We will obviously keep track as the FDA continues to investigate so that our customers can be sure they are getting a safe product.”

Safeway stores were handling the situation much the same way.

“We went ahead and pulled the tomatoes that are on the FDA list, said spokeswoman Cherie Myers. “We still have tomatoes that are good to go.”

Shipments of tomatoes from “safe” areas will soon be back on the shelves, she said.

But Lynn warns that while many stores have removed the questionable produce, consumers should pay attention. Just because a grocer is selling tomatoes doesn’t mean they’re safe, she said.

“There has not been an official recall. Consumers need to ask the question,” Lynn said.

Meanwhile, anyone who feels ill with salmonella symptoms — diarrhea, fever and abdominal cramps — should seek medical care, she said. Illness strikes 12 to 72 hours after infection and lasts four to seven days, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Locally, tomatoes are not yet in season, though Hedlin Family Produce already has some available that were grown in a greenhouse. Those are safe, and Mount Vernon Farmers Market Manager Ron Farrell said they’re already being sold at the Saturday market in downtown Mount Vernon.

“If it’s not tomatoes — it was spinach last year,” Farrell said of the widespread food scares. “I hate to be a fear-mongerer, but it is another reason to utilize local growers as much as you can.”

* Assistant City Editor Colette Weeks can be reached at or 360-416-2132.


WANT TO KNOW MORE?

FDA Web site:
http://www.fda.gov/oc/opacom/hottopics/tomatoes.html#consumers

County Web site:
http://www.skagitcounty.net

To report problems with tomatoes or other FDA-regulated products, contact the FDA Washington district office consumer complaint coordinator at 425-483-4949.