Sprouts spawn deadly E. coli

Authorities conclude contaminated beans and bean sprouts from a German farm were the source of the recent E. coli outbreak in Europe.

| 1 min read

Register for free to listen to this article
Listen with Speechify
0:00
1:00
Share

Bean sproutsWIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Contaminated beans and bean sprouts -- including lentils, alfalfa and more -- from an organic farm in Northern Germany caused the E. coli outbreak that spread through the country over the last several weeks, German health officials said on Friday (June 10). The outbreak has resulted in 35 deaths and more than 3,255 infected individuals, according to the latest update from the World Health Organization. Authorities traced the outbreak from patients to restaurants to farms to identify the source, but the findings have yet to be confirmed with positive laboratory tests, notes The New York Times. The bacterial strain has proved to be particularly deadly, with infections leading to haemolytic uraemic syndrome, a blood clotting disease causing kidney failure.

Previously, authorities fingered cucumbers, tomatoes and ...

Interested in reading more?

Become a Member of

The Scientist Logo
Receive full access to more than 35 years of archives, as well as TS Digest, digital editions of The Scientist, feature stories, and much more!
Already a member? Login Here

Keywords

Meet the Author

  • Megan Scudellari

    This person does not yet have a bio.
Share
A greyscale image of cells dividing.
March 2025, Issue 1

How Do Embryos Know How Fast to Develop

In mammals, intracellular clocks begin to tick within days of fertilization.

View this Issue
Discover the history, mechanics, and potential of PCR.

Become a PCR Pro

Integra Logo
3D rendered cross section of influenza viruses, showing surface proteins on the outside and single stranded RNA inside the virus

Genetic Insights Break Infectious Pathogen Barriers

Thermo Fisher Logo
A photo of sample storage boxes in an ultra-low temperature freezer.

Navigating Cold Storage Solutions

PHCbi logo 
The Immunology of the Brain

The Immunology of the Brain

Products

Sapio Sciences

Sapio Sciences Makes AI-Native Drug Discovery Seamless with NVIDIA BioNeMo

DeNovix Logo

New DeNovix Helium Nano Volume Spectrophotometer

Olink Logo

Olink® Reveal: Accessible NGS-based proteomics for every lab

Olink logo
Zymo Logo

Zymo Research Launches the Quick-16S™ Full-Length Library Prep Kit