Produce – specifically leafy greens – are now the main source of food
poisonings in the United States, says the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.
Food safety communications guru Dr.Doug Powell says this is not
surprising since produce is eaten fresh, so it gets no high-temperature cooking
to kill harmful bacteria.
And if leafy greens are contaminated, once they are in the kitchen
they can spread to other foods.
“This is nothing new, and nothing to be scared of,” writes Powell for
his Barblog internet service.
“It means that food safety starts on the farm, and goes all the way
through to the fork.”
He is critical of farmers and their organizations who claim food
safety is important to them, yet provide no data to back up their claims.
He cites California leafy-greens growers as an example and says “for
the number of outbreaks, for the number of severely ill and dead, for the
decade of inaction, you don’t get to lecture Americans about how it’s a shared
responsibility” of growers and consumers.
“Take care of your own stuff, admit when California leafy greens are
involved in outbreaks instead of stalling and obstructing, and if you’re
program is so great, publish all test results and market food safety at retail,”
Powell wrote.
Otherwise, save the morality lectures and go back to growing crops,
making money, and try not to make people barf.”
The Centers for Disease Control estimates there are more than nine
million cases of food poisoning a year and found that produce is responsible in
46 per cent of those cases.
The Center says the produce and poultry industries need to take
measures to prevent contamination.
