# 5606
Although many in the news media have latched firmly onto `organic sprouts’ as the `likely source’ of the E. Coli infection spreading across Europe, test results on the suspect produce have not been released yet.
The Associated Press is reporting that these test results are expected later today.
Tests to Determine if Sprouts Are to Blame for Killer E. Coli Outbreak
Published June 06, 2011
If test results do come back positive, the next step will be to determine exactly how they came to become contaminated.
Fertilizers are not used in the growing of sprouts (essentially all you need is water or steam, the right temperature, darkness, and the seeds).
So the `obvious suspects’ would include the water supply, the seed stock, shipping containers, or perhaps accidental introduction of the bacteria by an infected employee.
As a home sprouter of mung beans (I have a jar going right now), I’ll be very interested to learn how this contamination – if it is confirmed – came to be.
Meanwhile, the ECDC has released their latest figures (June 6th) on cases of HUS and non-HUS STEC cases and associated deaths.
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