Instructions: Beverage fears: tempest in a teapot?

ICED tea has come under fire across the country as a possible source of bacterial contamination.

In January, the federal Centers for Disease Control sent a memo to state health officers across the country with guidelines on how to brew and store tea. The concern was prompted by reports that fecal coliform has been found in iced tea samples taken from restaurants.

``Tea, by being a natural product, has a potential to get contaminated if its not brewed at a temperature hot enough to kill that bacteria, said Rick Hunter, Floridas deputy health officer.

Fecal coliform (-) which can come from animal or human feces (-) isnt dangerous itself, Hunter said. But coliform can be an indicator that other disease-bearing pathogens are present.

The CDC said in its memo that the only known case of illness that may be attributable to iced tea occurred in 1986 in Texas. But a Cincinnati man asked the city health department in August to analyze a sample of iced tea from a restaurant. The tea had high levels of coliform bacteria, leading the department to test tea samples from 20 restaurants. The department then issued an advisory on how to brew tea.

The question of tainted tea has come up further as TV stations across the country say they have run independent tests of restaurant tea and found coliform bacteria.

The CDC said that while tea leaves may have bacteria, brewing iced tea at 195 degrees for 3 to 5 minutes should take care of any problems. The CDC also advised against storing tea at room temperature for more than eight hours, and recommended against making ``sun tea, since the water doesnt get hot enough.

``On the list of things that cause food-borne illnesses, this isnt close, said Ed Towey, spokesman for the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, the Florida agency that inspects hotels and restaurants.

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