State health officials tried to reassue consumers Wednesday that jalepenos grown locally are safe, after the FDA issued a statement recommending consumers avoid all jalepenos after salmonella was found on one in Mexico.

"North Carolina has never been implicated in this outbreak, that's the point I want to get across," said Steve Troxler, North Carolina Department of Agriculture commissioner. "Despite this fact, our famers are suffering the consequences of the FDA's announcement."

Troxler said the FDA's statement was too broad and unfairly targets all jalepeno growers.

"(If) one farmer that loses a market because of a blanket statement that includes a product that could not have caused this out break, it's wrong and it's an injustice," said Troxler.

Japlepenos make up a quarter of Randy Bailey's business at his farm in Oxford. He says when the FDA sent out the notice, 25 percent of his business stopped. And that hasn't been the only problem.

"We're bringing back what we sold last week from our customers (from NY to FL), trying to figure out what we're going to do," Bailey said. It's costing him hundreds of thousands of dollars to do that.

Tammy Parker is a local seller at the state farmers market and says she's seen the affects as well.

"We hear the questions, 'is this good?' and we have to tell them 'it's not harmful, it's good,'" she said.

Bailey said he's worried it'll be tought to build consumers' confidence back up since the FDA's annoucement.

"I know the tomato (growers) sales are still down even though they've been exonerated from the problem," he said.

He stresses if people buy local, there's very little to worry about.

Health officials said if consumers want to make sure the food their buying is safe, the best bet is to ask the supplier where they got it from. And starting this fall, there will be a 'country of origin' label on all produce so it'll be easy to see where it came from.

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