In this breezy salsa-flavored corner of the world, a sombrero of a news story just took a turn for the sour. The melodious world of health officials have blown their trumpets in a dire orchestra, announcing the temporary closure of a cantaloupe-packing plant. Bad news? Well, the culprit is no less than a salacious guest we have all long known, feared, and avoided: Salmonella.
Usually our main guy here is melon or chili pepper, starring in tales both sweet and spicy. But our unlucky fellow for today's ballad? A cantaloupe. The beautifully netted fruit that embarks on a journey from a plant in the sun-drenched state of Sonora, got caught between a rock and a hard place. No, we aren't talking about a tricky salsa dance move, but something far more sinister - Salmonella.
Apparently, our round friend took a wrong step and now we have a cliffhanger of a climax - five deaths in the scenic land of Canada, and three in the vast expanses of the United States. The name of the production company in question has been sealed in an envelope as secret as a family mole recipe. But, our neighbors up north in Canada managed to connect the dots in this mystery, tracing the salsa steps back to 'Malichita' and 'Rudy' brand cantaloupes.
As we wait with bated breath for the next installment in this saga, inspectors, armed with swabs and test tubes, scour the plant for clues. Water and surface samples turn into detectives, probing for traces of our villain, Salmonella. As for the number of casualties, the tally has reached 230 in the US and 129 in Canada since last October.
In this munching mystery, our cantaloupe companions, hailing from the sleepless fields of Sonora, have set alarm bells ringing. Making this spicy story even tangier is that the fruit was brought to the states by no ordinary traders but Sofia Produce LLC of the desert-border town Nogales, Arizona and Pacific Trellis Fruit LLC of the head-turning city of Los Angeles.
As for the damage? Over 36,000 cartons of cantaloupes have been summoned from the market in a recall move of epic proportions. Amidst this juicy drama, officials dressed in lab coats are now stepping onto center stage, cautioning folks who were previously jiving to the melodies of the market, to steer clear of unknown sourced cantaloupes.
As we salsa our way into the unfolding world of this melon-drama, let's be sure to check the seeds of every news piece and hope for a sweet resolution to this cantaloupe controversy.
