I just did a quick search on PubMed and yes - Listeria has been isolated from cabbage (see an example below). However, we need a microbiologist to comment on this. The risk of Listeria in pregnant women is miscarriage; are infants at risk if they become infected with Listeria? We have always said that if a woman is going to apply cabbage leaves to her breast that the leaves should be well washed (don't forget tetanus spores in soil) and not to apply the leaves directly to her nipple area. Lisa Amir MBBS, MMed, IBCLC in Melbourne, Australia Appl Environ Microbiol. 1989 Aug;55(8):1925-7. Listeria spp. found on fresh market produce. Heisick JE, Wagner DE, Nierman ML, Peeler JT. Center for Microbiological Investigations, Food and Drug Administration, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55401. From October 1987 to August 1988, 1,000 tests were conducted on 10 types of fresh produce from two Minneapolis area supermarkets to detect Listeria spp. The produce included broccoli, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, cucumbers, lettuce, mushrooms, potatoes, radishes, and tomatoes. The vegetables were tested by the Food and Drug Administration method for isolation of Listeria spp., with the addition of LiCl-phenylethanol-moxalactam agar in the last 280 tests; 8.6 and 11.4% of these tests were positive by modified McBride and LiCl-phenylethanol-moxalactam agars, respectively. Listeria monocytogenes was isolated from cabbage, cucumbers, potatoes, and radishes; L. innocua was isolated from cucumbers, lettuce, mushrooms, potatoes, and radishes; L. seeligeri was isolated from cabbage and radishes; and L. welshimeri was isolated from cucumbers, potatoes, and radishes. The isolates were of various serotypes; however, the L. monocytogenes isolates were predominantly serotype 1 (82%). Only potatoes (25.8% positive) and radishes (30.3% positive) showed significant amounts of L. monocytogenes contamination. *********************************************** To temporarily stop your subscription: set lactnet nomail To start it again: set lactnet mail (or digest) To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet All commands go to [log in to unmask] The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(R) mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html