WASHINGTON (AP) -- An outbreak of listeria in cantaloupe that has
killed as many as four people is a mystery to disease specialists
who are used to seeing the pathogen in deli meats and soft cheeses.

About 800 cases of listeria are found in the United States each
year, but those cases are rarely from produce. It can be fatal for
one in five who fall ill.

The contaminated melons were whole fruit from Jensen Farms in
the Rocky Ford region of Colorado and have been recalled.
Twenty-two people have so far been sickened in seven states. Two
deaths have been confirmed by CDC, one each in Colorado and New
Mexico, and two more in New Mexico are under investigation.

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)