The source of the E. coli tainted spinach that resulted in an outbreak last fall has been found. No, it wasn’t terrorism. It was an organic farm in San Benito County.
The contamination occurred in a field transitioning from conventional to organic farming practices, she said.
Seattle-based attorney Bill Marler, who is representing 90 plaintiffs in a suit related to the E. coli outbreak, added Salinas grower Mission Organics to the defendants in his lawsuit on Tuesday.
On Wednesday, Marler told the Free Lance he has known since November that the E. coli contamination occurred on land farmed by Mission Organics and leased from Paicines Ranch, and that the state agency’s investigation only confirmed that.
“It’s the worst-kept secret,” Marler said. “It was already evident, and once you say that it’s a 50-acre ranch, well, it is what it is.”
