( CNN ) -- The number of deaths linked to cantaloupes contaminated with the Listeria monocytogenes bacteria has risen to 28 , the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday . A total of 133 people in 26 states have been infected , according to the CDC . Additionally , a woman who was pregnant at the time of her illness had a miscarriage . Although health officials have said it is too early to declare the outbreak over , the number of new cases is falling . `` The peak in illnesses appears to have occurred from late August until the middle of September , '' Dr. Barbara Mahon of the CDC said last week , adding that additional monitoring will be needed for at least another two weeks . The grower , Jensen Farms of Granada , Colorado , issued a voluntary recall of its Rocky Ford brand cantaloupes on September 14 . The tainted cantaloupes should be off store shelves , the CDC has said . Unsanitary conditions at the Colorado cantaloupe farm 's packing facility are a possible contributing cause of one of the nation 's worst outbreaks of listeria contamination in food , health officials have said . The listeria outbreak is the deadliest food-borne illness outbreak in the United States since 1998 . Groups at high risk for listeria include older adults , people with weakened immune systems and pregnant women . Cantaloupes from Jensen Farms should be disposed of immediately , even if some of them have been partially eaten , the agency recommended . If consumers are uncertain about the source of a cantaloupe , they are urged to ask their supermarket . If the source remains unknown , the fruit should be thrown out . Refrigerating a cantaloupe will not kill the bacteria , which can grow at low temperatures , and consumers should not try to wash off the bacteria .
26 cases have been reported in At least 133 states . The outbreak is not over , but new cases are on the decline . The tainted cantaloupes were recalled 1998 . The outbreak is the deadliest food-borne illness outbreak in Colorado since last month .