Inspectors with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are searching farms in Florida and Mexico in attempts to find the source of tomatoes contaminated with salmonella that have sickened 552 people. The focus of the investigation will be on big packing houses or distribution warehouses.

The earliest consumers who reported foodborne illness from Salmonella got sick on April 10, 2008, and the latest was on June 5, 2008. Thirty states have reported sick residents, with at least 48 consumers being hospitalized.

The agency speculated that parts of Mexico and Florida are the most probable sources of the Salmonella contamination because they were supplying a majority of the nation’s tomatoes at the time of the outbreak.

Meanwhile, consumers are urged to avoid eating raw red plum, red Roma or red round tomatoes unless they were grown in specific states or countries the FDA has cleared of suspicion. For an updated list, customers can visit the FDA’s website.

Source: “Tainted tomato cases reach 552,” MSNBC.com, June 20, 2008.