POISONING

Listeria Outbreak Deadliest in a Decade

Up to 16 killed, 72 ill from cantaloupes.

Up to 16 people have been killed and 72 infected so far by a food-poisoning outbreak traced to cantaloupes from a Colorado farm, health officials said Tuesday. It's the deadliest food outbreak in more than a decade, surpassing the number of deaths linked to salmonella in peanuts almost three years ago. The listeria has been traced back to contaminated cantaloupes at Jensen Farms in Holly, Colo., which issued a voluntary recall on Sept. 14, but cantaloupes raised at the farm have been shipped to 25 states. CDC director Thomas Frieden warned consumers to throw out any cantaloupes if they are unsure where it came from. Listeria is a bacterium that causes mild illness in healthy people but can be deadly to the elderly—and most of the deaths have been people over 60. Meanwhile, Tyson Foods has recalled more than 130,000 pounds of ground beef due to possible E. coli contamination.