LOS ANGELES, June 11 (Xinhua) -- A tomato recall in the United States issued by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this week sparked a scare among consumers, and brought California's tomato-growing industry into a mode of crisis.

    The FDA has warned Americans to avoid some types of raw tomatoes, as investigators continued hunting for the source of a salmonella outbreak that has sickened about 170 people across the country.

    Even though the federal agency cleared California's tomato crop as safe, local farmers and agriculture officials still worry that consumers will avoid all tomatoes, just as the tomato industry are about to bring in a bumper crop.

    "The industry has been extremely concerned and frustrated," said Ed Beckman, president of the California Tomato Farmers, a grower-owned cooperative that produces about 80 percent of the state's billion-pound-a-year fresh tomato crop.

    "It is very important that consumers understand that all California tomatoes are safe to eat," Beckman told the San Jose Mercury News daily Wednesday.

    Beckman said California's tomato production will begin peaking within the next week or so and his organization will supply supermarkets and restaurants with signs to help make it clear to consumers that their tomatoes were grown in the Golden State.

    The FDA warned consumers in New Mexico and Texas earlier this month about the salmonella outbreak, and expanded its warnings across the country during the weekend.

    As a result, Wal-Mart, McDonald's, and other U.S. chain supermarkets and restaurants began voluntarily removing many tomatoes from their shelves.

    Agriculture is California's largest industry, and tomatoes are its No. 8 crop. The state accounting for 31 percent of tomato crop in the United States, ranking first in growing tomatoes for processing and second in fresh-market tomatoes, agriculture officials said.

    The current tomato crisis is the biggest food scare in the country since E. coli-infected spinach grown on a California farm killed at least three people and sickened more than 200 in September, 2006.

    The latest outbreak was first spotted in New Mexico and Texas, where investigators identified dozens of tomato-related salmonella infections apparently from a common source from as early as late April. Later similar infections were found in other states.

    So far the source of the tomatoes responsible for the illnesses in at least 16 states has not been pinpointed. Health officials said at least 23 people have been hospitalized but no deaths reported.