Sustainable Agriculture : contamination

Salmonella Outbreak Continues - maybe tomatoes, maybe not tomatoes

VincentD — Sat, 28 Jun 2008 01:09:00 GMT

The latest news regarding the Salmonella outbreak in tomatoes is not optimistic. New cases continue to be reported. The most recent case of Salmonellosis with the saintpaul serotype was report on June 15, 2008 and so far and since April, 810 cases have...(read more)

Food safety and produce

VincentD — Fri, 24 Aug 2007 02:24:00 GMT

Is produce the safest fresh food group? That's the question posed by the Barfblog today. The Ontario (Canada) Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, estimates that 41% of foodborne illness in Ontario can be attributed to produce. A 2005 study in Emerging Infectious Diseases 11(4):603-609 indicates that 38 of 183 foodborne outbreaks (21%) were directly related to produce. Thirty-four percent (34%) of the produce-related outbreaks were from lettuce; 18% from apple cider or apple juice; 16% from salad and 11% each for melons and cole slaw. Dr. Michael Doyle of the University of Georgia Center for Food Safety told a recent meeting of the Institute of Food Technologists in Chicago that in the 25 years preceding 1997, there were 190 outbreaks of foodborne illness associated with fresh produce. In the five years that followed, the number jumps to 249. The Marler Blog, of the Marler-Clark law firm provides commentary on the resurgence of E. coli outbreaks in the last few years and cites an article written by Bill Hord of the Omaha World-Harold entitled "E.coli vexes despite safety effort." The article shows an upward trend since 2004 of E.coli illness. The Marler Blog has also taken notice of the E. coli contamination of lettuce from Kauai in a recent posting.

While we should all continue to eat fresh produce and strive for our 5-a-days, it begs the question that shouldn't we be also examining how to avoid or reduce or mitigate the potential contamination of our fruits and vegetables? If you've ever had a serious food borne illness, you know it's not just the "runs." It can be very serious especially in children and senior citizens. If we are to continue to support the Buy Fresh, Buy Local industry in Hawaii, shouldn't we also be working with our farmers to make sure that the local produce is as safe as possible?

Eating Local and Food Safety Issues

VincentD — Wed, 15 Aug 2007 00:26:00 GMT

I think we were all disappointed when we opened up the Tuesday, August 10, 2007 Honolulu Advertiser when Jan TenBruggencate article about the E. coli outbreak traced to lettuce on Kauai. It seems that 8 people were sickened due to E. coli contamination after eating lettuce. The E. coli was the O157:H7 strain that has been so devastating in the contamination of bagged spinach from California. In both cases, it appears that the fields were contaminated somehow by runoff containing E. coli due to neighboring livestock farms and the fact that both products are consumed raw makes it a risk. In the spinach case, the contaminated spinach was mixed with other spinach, bagged and shipped nationwide. In June 2007, USDA Economic Research Service presented a study in their on-line magazine, Amber Waves, that illustrated the impact of the outbreak on spinach shipments and sales. Even in 2007, almost a year after the contamination, bagged spinach sales lag behind sales before the outbreak. The California spinach growers were forced to lay off workers and plow under their crops. And the impacts went way beyond the Salinas Valley in California. The Marler Blog put out by Bill Marler of the Marler-Clark law firm, reported that an Indiana salad-processing plant closed as a result of the down turn in bagged salad products. A Brevard County, Florida produce broker filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The estimated cost to California spinach growers was at least $50 million in lost revenue in 2006.

In Hawaii, if we are to focus on the importance of "buying local" produce, shouldn't we also be fairly confident in the safety of the food that we eat that comes from our local farms? I'm not sure that we can. Considering the impact that the E. coli contamination had and continues to have on California spinach growers, what would be the impact to our local produce industries, especially greens and herbs which are eaten raw with minimal processing? Frankly, a more severe outbreak than what was reported on Kauai, would devastate the "buy fresh, buy local" movement in Hawaii. So how confident are we about our produce growers' ability to reduce the risk of contamination? I want to believe that they are doing their best to reduce my risk. I don't particularly want to parboil my Manoa lettuce!

CTAHR's Jim Hollyer and Lynn Nakamura-Tengan have been working with farmers to help them prepare for third-party food safety audits. To pass these audits, the farmers must "clean up their act" with respect to how they manage their products as they grow, harvest, process and package their product. With Whole Foods coming to town and their higher standards, along with more and more retailers and even wholesalers concerned about the source of their products, the whole idea of food safety for these "local" products becomes an idea whose time has come.