Illness linked to imported produce finds foothold in Texas

DALLAS (AP) — Health officials are trying to determine why there's been a dramatic increase in the number of people in Texas each year who contract a food-borne illness that's often linked to produce imported from Mexico and other warmer climes.

State and federal health officials say an increasing amount of produce that's imported from tropical and subtropical regions — where the parasite that causes the illness is endemic — is likely contributing to the recent outbreaks.

The Food and Drug Administration last year banned imports of some fresh cilantro from Mexico after an investigation found feces and toilet paper in growing fields there.

The cilantro, imported from the Mexican state of Puebla, was linked to 2013 and 2014 outbreaks of stomach illnesses in the U.S., and health authorities also suspected cilantro from the region was responsible for additional cases in Texas and Wisconsin last year.

The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that, aside from E. coli infections, there were no significant changes in food-borne infection rates last year compared to the three previous years.