E. coli scare prompts recall of cauliflower, red and green lettuce

If you’re planning to buy any cauliflower or lettuce for your holiday dinners this year, watch out.

The Government of Nunavut’s Health Department says batches of cauliflower, green leaf lettuce and red leaf lettuce from Adam Bros. Farming Inc. of Santa Maria, California, are possibly contaminated with a nasty bug called E. coli O157:H7.

“Recalled products should be thrown out or returned to the store where they were purchased,” said a news release.

Food carrying E. coli may look normal and give off a normal smell, but it can still make you sick.

The symptoms of E. coli infection include nausea, vomiting, mild to severe abdominal cramps and watery to bloody diarrhea.

“In severe cases of illness, some people may have seizures or strokes, need blood transfusions and kidney dialysis, or live with permanent kidney damage,” the news release said.

Adam Bros. Farming Inc. said in a news release that the recall affects lettuce and cauliflower harvested between Nov. 27 and Nov. 30.

They did the recall after discovering that a reservoir close to the produce tested positive for E. coli.

“Filtered and treated water from the reservoir may have come in contact with the produce after it was harvested,” the company said.

For a full list of recalled products, look at this page on the website of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.