WEDNESDAY JUNE 11, 2008 (foodconsumer.org) --The Illinois Department of Public Health on June 5 announced that the state had received reports of 12 cases of illness caused by the same Salmonella Saintpaul strain that has been implicated in the nationwide tomatoes-associated outbreak.

Dr. Damon T. Arnold, state public health director on the same say issued a warning to Illinoisans to use safe food handling practices when selecting, storing and preparing all produce while the department was still investigating the source of the pathogen in Illinois.

The cases of salmonella in Illinois increased to 17 next day on June 6, according to Chicago Tribune.   Two people were hospitalized.  The tribune cited Kitty Loewy, spokesperson for the Cook County Department of Public Health as saying four of the salmonella cases were recorded in suburban Cook County, but no one was hospitalized.

Nationwide, at least 167 people have fallen ill after eating tainted tomatoes including at least 23 hospitalized in 17 states. The majority of cases have been reported in New Mexico and Texas.

Illinois has become one of the several states that were hit hardest by the outbreak. But state officials said it's too early to determine whether these cases are linked to tomatoes.

The Food and Drug Administration said the Salmonella outbreak was likely caused by contaminated large raw red tomatoes including Roma, red plum and red round.

The FDA recommends consumers avoid eating these types of tomatoes. Safe to eat are cherry tomatoes, grape tomatoes, home-ground tomatoes or those sold with the vine still attached.  

People can also feel comfortable eating tomatoes from a source on the FDA safe list including Alabama, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Jersey ,New York ,Nebraska, North Carolina ,Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee ,Texas ,West Virginia ,Wisconsin, Belgium ,Canada, Dominican Republic ,Guatemala ,Israel, Netherlands, and Puerto Rico.

The Illinois Department of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend people take the following steps to prevent Salmonella infection:

• Avoid buying bruised or damaged tomatoes and discard any that appear spoiled.
• Thoroughly wash all tomatoes under running water.
• Refrigerate within two hours any cut, peeled or cooked tomatoes, otherwise discard.
• Wash cutting boards, dishes, utensils and counter tops with hot water and soap when switching among foods.