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U.S. Food and Drug Administration

FDA: Outbreak linked to cilantro from Mexico

KVUE-TV
There is a partial import ban on cilantro from Peubla, Mexico, according to the FDA.

The Food and Drug Administration issued a partial import ban Monday on cilantro from Puebla, Mexico, after linking it to a cyclospora outbreak that sickened more than 200 people in Texas this year. Similar outbreaks in 2013 and 2014 were also linked to cilantro from the same area.

The FDA issued an alert Monday saying the herb would be banned from April 1 to August 31 annually corresponding with the timing of outbreaks.

The cilantro may have been contaminated by fecal matter in the water near growing fields, according to the FDA statement.

FDA and Mexican authorities inspected 11 farms and packing places in Puebla from 2013 to 2015 and found "objectionable offenses" at eight of them including human feces and toilet paper in fields and surrounding areas.

"FDA believes it is extremely unlikely that these outbreaks of cyclosporiasis are due to isolated contamination events because of their recurring nature," the FDA said in the alert. The ban will continue annually unless individual farms prove they have sanitary conditions, according to the alert.

As of July 27,  205 cases of cyclosporiasis have been reported to the Texas Department of State Health Services. There have been 77 cyclospora cases reported in Travis County, 10 in Williamson County and five in Hays County.

Contributing: Lori Grisham, USA TODAY Network

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