Although the danger from salmonella-contaminated mangoes appears to be over, the Food and Drug Administration has labeled them a high risk fruit. Last summer a total of 143 people in 15 states were sickened by two strains of salmonella, and more than 30 were sick enough to require hospitalization. Both the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and the FDA found that the source of the problem was Mexico.
In particular, the Daniella brand of Mexican mangoes seemed to be the likely source of the contamination which the Mexican government denies. However, that government also failed to allow the FDA to inspect the brand s facilities shortly after some of those mangoes were recalled.
Mangoes currently on the U.S. market are from Brazil and Ecuador, not Mexico. The Mexican varieties are usually available from March through August, so consumers can be reassured that current supplies are safe.
ACSH s Dr. Ruth Kava notes, While the outbreak will result in more stringent inspections of imported Mexican mangoes, a more effective technology food irradiation is currently available and would have prevented this entire episode. Fortunately, no one has died yet, as far as we know, as a result of this outbreak, but salmonella food poisoning can be fatal. It s incomprehensible that we don t use the most modern means to prevent such occurrences.
ACSH s Dr. Josh Bloom puts it a little more bluntly: The 143 people who got sick can thank the anti-everything groups, such as Greenpeace and all the other crazies that oppose any sort of technology discovered after the 14th century.