Hoping to solve the mystery of the Salmonella, investigators are now inspecting the shipments of imported jalapeños at the Mexican border, The Washington Post reported.

The Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it is too soon to say that jalapeños are the main cause of the Salmonella outbreak. As far as the investigators are concerned, the jalapeños are still on the same list with the tomatoes, cilantro and serrano peppers as one of the common salsa ingredients under investigation.

Officials are also meticulously checking out cilantro and serrano peppers, but, as FDA spokeswoman Stephanie Kwisnek put it, investigators haven’t got a prime suspect yet.

The number of victims made by the salmonella is nearing 1000 and another death was allegedly caused by the rare outbreak. Although the FDA still doesn’t know what foods have been making people sick, the agency officials warned people to avoid certain varieties of tomatoes, while its agents are testing several foods served with tomatoes, including certain peppers, as well as tomatillos and fresh cilantro.

Since April, 967 consumers all over the United States and 4 Canadians were infected with salmonella, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) informed. Three of the Canadians which have reported Salmonella St. Paul infections said the infection occurred while traveling in the US. More than 189 people have been hospitalized so far due to the rare strain of Salmonella.

Federal officials are facing a tough task. If they keep waiting for proof the risk of more Salmonella victims is rising. On the other and, if they are too hasty and they single out the wrong food it could cost an industry millions of dollars (e.g. the tomato industry has already lost $100 million).