Are garden tomatoes safe for consumption?

Not to worry. Your garden tomatoes will be just fine when they ripen.

The salmonella outbreak that knocked tomatoes off grocery shelves since last week has not affected Minnesota-grown tomatoes -- or the plants growing in your yard.

Health officials say the supplies of an unknown producer or producers of raw, red plum or round tomatoes in California or Florida have become contaminated.

The salmonella bacteria comes from feces -- human or animal -- and it can live in virtually any kind of fresh food. Outbreaks are frequently connected to raw or undercooked meat.

But unless you somehow contaminate your home-grown tomatoes, they are safe to eat. And your plants are safe to touch, said Heidi Kassenborg, a food safety expert at the Minnesota Department of Agriculture.

Cooking tomatoes will kill the bacteria. Washing produce is always a good idea, she said, but it doesn't necessarily work to remove salmonella, which can penetrate the skin of a tomato and live inside, just as it can penetrate the shell of an egg.

In general, Kassenborg said, you should always keep fresh produce away from raw meat when cooking, and cook meat -- especially ground beef -- until it's well-done.

MAURA LERNER