A produce grower in California says nearly all its recent shipments of green leaf lettuce have been destroyed or set aside for destruction because of concern the produce might have been contaminated by E. coli bacteria.
The Nunes Company of the city of Salinas recalled more than 8,500 cartons of the lettuce harvested from one farm. But officials said Monday it is searching for 250 remaining cartons.
On Sunday, the company said tests had revealed the presence of E. coli in irrigation water, but as far as it knew, no consumers had been sickened.
The recalled lettuce had been shipped to seven western states.
Last month, fresh spinach was taken off U.S. supermarket shelves after three people died and nearly 200 were sickened by E. coli carried by the spinach.
Most healthy adults recover from E. coli exposure within a week, but the bacterium causes diarrhea and can cause kidney failure, particularly among children and older people.
Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.