North Carolina tomato growers prepare for bruises

  RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina tomato growers can’t catch a break.
  After a year of struggling through a statewide drought, farmers now face nationwide doubt.
  Growers across the state say they are worried a salmonella outbreak linked to raw tomatoes could doom this year’s crop, which is just going to harvest. North Carolina tomatoes are on the safe list, but farmers say it may be difficult to convince consumers the product is safe to eat.
  ``I don’t know how it’s going to play out,‘’ said Randall Patterson, who grows 315 acres of tomatoes in China Grove. ``I worry we won’t be able to sell one because no one will eat tomatoes for a while.‘’
  Federal health investigators still have not found the source of the outbreak that’s sickened 167 people in 17 states since April. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the scare is linked to a rare strain called salmonella saintpaul.
  Officials believe only red plum, red Roma and round red tomatoes have caused illnesses. And federal investigators have cleared nine states, including both Carolinas, along with several countries.
  Brian Long, a spokesman for the North Carolina Agriculture Department, said he has fielded calls from tomato growers around the state.
  ``They’re worried about people not hearing the whole story. ... They fear being painted with a broad brush even though North Carolina is on the safe list,‘’ Long said.
  In 2006, farm income from tomatoes was worth $28 million, 18th among all North Carolina commodities.
  Florida, which grows the bulk of the nation’s tomatoes, has already finished harvest season and Florida Agriculture Department spokeswoman Liz Compton said the scare is hurting the industry. It hasn’t helped that McDonald’s, Wal-Mart and Burger King pulled tomatoes from menus and shelves unless they were grown in states and countries not linked to the scare.
  Federal authorities cleared fresh tomatoes grown in Florida and California on Tuesday. Also cleared are crops from Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Belgium, Canada, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Israel, the Netherlands and Puerto Rico.
  Salmonella is a bacteria that lives in the intestinal tracts of humans and other animals, and it’s most often transmitted to humans by eating food contaminated with animal feces. Most infected people suffer fever, diarrhea and abdominal cramps starting 12 to 72 hours after infection.
  Ron Lee, who grows about 10 acres of tomatoes in Johnston County, said he just started picking his crop a few days ago and he’s one of the first in the state to start. He said more people probably catch a cold or the flu from sitting near people in a restaurant than will get sick from tomatoes.
  ``I’m not scared of (the tomatoes) at all,‘’ Lee said. ``I would definitely eat them.‘’
  Melinda James, president of the N.C. Tomato Growers Association, said the nationwide fear hasn’t yet affected North Carolina growers because the crop hasn’t been picked. She’s been selling tomatoes from Georgia at a fruit stand she runs.
  ``People are very concerned,‘’ she said. “Customers want to know where they came from.“