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Romaine or cos lettuce (''Lactuca sativa'' L. var. ''longifolia'') is a variety of
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Romaine or cos lettuce (''Lactuca sativa'' L. var. ''longifolia'') is a variety of lettuce
Lettuce (''Lactuca sativa'') is an annual plant of the family Asteraceae. It is most often grown as a leaf vegetable, but sometimes for its stem and seeds. Lettuce is most often used for salads, although it is also seen in other kinds of food, ...
that grows in a tall head of sturdy dark green leaves with firm ribs down their centers. Unlike most lettuces, it is tolerant of heat. In North America, romaine is often sold as whole heads or as "hearts" that have had the outer leaves removed and are often packaged together.
Commercially sold romaine lettuce has occasionally been the subject of product warnings by both U.S. and Canadian health authorities warning that consumer supplies can become contaminated with or host pathogenic ''E.coli'' bacteria. Cattle can harbor the bacteria without ill effects, and be asymptomatic carriers of the bacterium. Lettuce becomes contaminated with the bacterium as the result of cattle manure being used to fertilize crop fields, or the proximity of cattle pastures and feedlots to water sources used to irrigate crops.
Origin and etymology
InNorth American English
North American English (NAmE, NAE) is the most generalized variety of the English language as spoken in the United States and Canada. Because of their related histories and cultures, plus the similarities between the pronunciations (accents), ...
it is known as "romaine" lettuce and in British English
British English (BrE, en-GB, or BE) is, according to Oxford Dictionaries, "English as used in Great Britain, as distinct from that used elsewhere". More narrowly, it can refer specifically to the English language in England, or, more broadl ...
the names "cos" lettuce and "romaine" lettuce are both used. Many dictionaries trace the word ''cos'' to the name of the Greek island of Cos
Cos, COS, CoS, coS or Cos. may refer to:
Mathematics, science and technology
* Carbonyl sulfide
* Class of service (CoS or COS), a network header field defined by the IEEE 802.1p task group
* Class of service (COS), a parameter in telephone syst ...
, from which the lettuce was presumably introduced. Other authorities trace ''cos'' to the Arabic word for lettuce, ' .
The first mention of cos lettuce in English dates from the late 17th century in John Evelyn's 1699 work ''Acetaria. A discourse of sallets''.
It apparently reached Western Europe via Rome, as it is called ''lattuga romana'' in Italian and ' in French, both meaning "Roman lettuce" – hence the name "romaine", the common term in North America.
Cultural significance
For 3000 years (from at least 2700 BC), lettuce was associated with the ancient Egyptian god of fertility,Min
Min or MIN may refer to:
Places
* Fujian, also called Mǐn, a province of China
** Min Kingdom (909–945), a state in Fujian
* Min County, a county of Dingxi, Gansu province, China
* Min River (Fujian)
* Min River (Sichuan)
* Mineola (Amtr ...
, for its resemblance to the phallus
A phallus is a penis (especially when erect), an object that resembles a penis, or a mimetic image of an erect penis. In art history a figure with an erect penis is described as ithyphallic.
Any object that symbolically—or, more precise ...
.
Romaine lettuce may be used in the Passover Seder
The Passover Seder (; he, סדר פסח , 'Passover order/arrangement'; yi, סדר ) is a ritual feast at the beginning of the Jewish holiday of Passover. It is conducted throughout the world on the eve of the 15th day of bitter_herb._It_symbolises_the_bitterness_inflicted_by_the_Egyptians_while_the_ bitter_herb._It_symbolises_the_bitterness_inflicted_by_the_Egyptians_while_the_Israelites">maror.html"_;"title="isan_in_the__Hebrew_...
_ritual_feast_as_a_type_of_maror">bitter_herb._It_symbolises_the_bitterness_inflicted_by_the_Egyptians_while_the_Israelites_were_slaves_in_Egypt.
The_day_of_22_Germinal_(French_Republican_Calendar).html" ;"title="Israelites.html" ;"title="maror.html" ;"title="isan in the Hebrew ...Cuisine
Romaine is a common salad green, and is the usual lettuce used in Caesar salad. Romaine lettuce is commonly used in Middle Eastern cuisine. Romaine, like other lettuces, may also be cooked. For example, it can be braised or made into soup. The thick ribs, especially on the older outer leaves, should have a milky fluid that gives the romaine its typically bitter herb taste. In North American supermarkets, romaine is widely available year-round.Food safety issues
From November 2017 through January 2018, thePublic Health Agency of Canada
The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC; french: Agence de la santé publique du Canada, ASPC) is an agency of the Government of Canada that is responsible for public health, emergency preparedness and response, and infectious and chronic dis ...
(PHA) identified romaine as being linked to illness
A disease is a particular abnormal condition that negatively affects the structure or function of all or part of an organism, and that is not immediately due to any external injury. Diseases are often known to be medical conditions that a ...
in 41 persons in Canada. A probably related outbreak affected 25 people in 15 states of the U.S. who ate leafy greens, but the U.S. Centers for Disease Control
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the national public health agency of the United States. It is a United States federal agency, under the Department of Health and Human Services, and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgi ...
(CDC) were unable to confirm that it was romaine in particular. There was one death. The disease agent was Shiga toxin-producing ''E. coli'' O157:H7. The most recent illness started on December 12, 2017; the PHA declared the outbreak over on January 10, 2018, and the CDC declared it over on January 25.
In response to another ''E. coli'' O157:H7 outbreak, which probably began in mid-March 2018, the CDC recommended in April 2018 that consumers not buy or eat romaine lettuce unless they could confirm it was not from the Yuma, Arizona
Yuma ( coc, Yuum) is a city in and the county seat of Yuma County, Arizona, United States. The city's population was 93,064 at the 2010 census, up from the 2000 census population of 77,515.
Yuma is the principal city of the Yuma, Arizona, M ...
, growing region. On May 22, 2018, after a month-long warning, the CDC announced it was now safe to consume romaine again. The outbreak killed five people and caused 89 hospitalizations across 32 states.
In June 2018, the FDA traced the source of the latest ''E. coli'' outbreak to water from a canal located in Yuma, Arizona
Yuma ( coc, Yuum) is a city in and the county seat of Yuma County, Arizona, United States. The city's population was 93,064 at the 2010 census, up from the 2000 census population of 77,515.
Yuma is the principal city of the Yuma, Arizona, M ...
.
In November 2018, the US CDC and the PHA of Canada issued a warning to consumers that romaine lettuce should not be consumed in any form, and that they should dispose of any currently on hand. The same strain of ''E. coli'' identified in the 2017-2018 outbreak was implicated. At least 43 people became ill in this outbreak, which the FDA traced to one of six counties in Central California: Monterey
Monterey (; es, Monterrey; Ohlone: ) is a city located in Monterey County on the southern edge of Monterey Bay on the U.S. state of California's Central Coast. Founded on June 3, 1770, it functioned as the capital of Alta California under bot ...
, San Benito, San Luis Obispo
San Luis Obispo (; Spanish for " St. Louis the Bishop", ; Chumash: ''tiłhini'') is a city and county seat of San Luis Obispo County, in the U.S. state of California. Located on the Central Coast of California, San Luis Obispo is roughly hal ...
, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz and Ventura. As of January 9, 2019, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has declared the most recent ''Escherichia coli'' O157:H7 outbreak linked to California grown romaine lettuce over.
Growers
Many US growers of romaine lettuce farm in Salinas in the summer and theImperial Valley
, photo = Salton Sea from Space.jpg
, photo_caption = The Imperial Valley below the Salton Sea. The US-Mexican border runs diagonally across the lower left of the image.
, map_image = Newriverwatershed-1-.jpg
, map_caption = Map of Imperial ...
and Yuma in the winter, relying on day laborers
Day labor (or day labour in Commonwealth spelling) is work done where the worker is hired and paid one day at a time, with no promise that more work will be available in the future. It is a form of contingent work.
Types
Day laborers (also k ...
crossing the border from Mexico. Much of the romaine lettuce sold in northern Europe is grown in southern Spain, relying on migrant laborers from Africa.
See also
* ''''Notes
References
* Kirschmann, John D. & Dunne, Lavon J. ''Nutrition Almanac'', ''s.v.'' .External links
* {{Taxonbar, from=Q1762893 Leaf vegetables Food plant cultivars Lettuce