HAMBURG, GERMANY - JUNE 04: Farmer Tobias Haack drives a tractor over 100,00 heads of romaine, iceberg and ten other types of lettuce in order to mulch them back into the ground at one of his fields on June 4, 2011 near Hamburg, Germany. Vegetable farmers in northern Germany are facing a crisis as public reaction to the current enterohemorrhagic E. coli, also known as the EHEC bacteria, outbreak has brought vegetable sales to a near halt. Haack says he usually sells 1,000 crates of lettuce a day, though currently he is selling about 40. "I hope they don't leave us hanging," he says of the German government, and considers current discussions of low-interest loans to stricken farmers unhelpful. He says if the crisis continues he will face severe financial problems within two to three weeks. At least 18 people have died from the EHEC outbreak and authorities, who initially suspected raw cucumbers, tomatoes and salad as being the carrier of the bacteria, are still seeking clues as to the cause.