Fresh Produce Discussion Blog

Created by The Packer's National Editor Tom Karst

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Poisoned peppers?

Doug Powell links to a blog post by food safety lawyer Bill Marler that's worth noting. Find it here.

Marler writes on his blog:

What if the great 2008 Tomato, right Pepper, Salmonella Outbreak actually happened this way?

At 10:00 PM last May 30th, on the same day New Mexico asked for help from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) with a growing outbreak of Salmonella Saintpaul, a foreign Network begin airing a video taken inside a fresh produce distribution center showing workers treating peppers with an unknown liquid. There is a claim that this is a terrorist act.

In the next 15 minutes, every network news operation is playing the video. The broadcast networks break into regular programming to air it, and the cable news stations go nonstop with the video while talking heads dissect it.

Coming on a Friday afternoon on the East Coast, the food terrorism story catches the mainstream Media completely off guard. Other than to say the video is being analyzed by CIA experts, and is presumed to be authentic, there isn’t much coming out of the government.

Far-fetched? Don’t count on it. I have been saying for years that a foodborne illness outbreak will look just like the terrorist act described above, but without the video on FOX News. Far-fetched?

Tell that to the 751 people in Wasco County, Oregon—including 45 who required hospital stays---who in 1984 ate at any one of ten salad bars in town and were poisoned with Salmonella by followers of Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh. The goal was to make people who were not followers of the cult too sick to vote in county elections.

Tell that to Chile, where in 1989, a shipment of grapes bound for the United States was found laced with cyanide, bringing trade suspension that cost the South American country $200 million. It was very much like a 1970s plot by Palestinian terrorists to inject Israel’s Jaffa oranges with mercury.

Tell that to the 111 people, including 40 children, sickened in May 2003 when a Michigan supermarket employee intentionally tainted 200 pounds of ground beef with an insecticide containing nicotine.

Tell that to Mr. Litvenenko, the Russian spy poisoned in the UK with polonium-laced food.

Tell that to Stanford University researchers who modeled a nightmare scenario where a mere 4 grams of botulinum toxin dropped into a milk production facility could cause serious illness and even death to 400,000 people in the United States.

The reason I bring this up is not only because we are about to mark the seventh anniversary of 9/11, but because I wonder if food terrorism really had been the cause of this year’s Salmonella Saintpaul outbreak, would it have made any difference in our government’s ability to figure out there was an outbreak, to figure out the cause, and to stop it before it sickened so many.

Would the fact of terrorists operating from inside a fresh produce distribution center somewhere inside the United States or Mexico brought more or effective resources to the search for the source of the Salmonella Saintpaul? If credit-taking terrorists were putting poison on our peppers, could we be certain Uncle Sam’s response would have been more robust or effective then if it was just a “regular” food illness outbreak?

Later, Marler writes:

If credit-taking terrorists were putting poison on our peppers, could we be certain that Uncle Sam’s response would be more robust, more effective than if it was just a “regular” food illness outbreak?

Absolutely not! The CDC publicly admits that it manages to count and track only one of every forty foodborne illness victims, and that its inspectors miss key evidence as outbreaks begin. The FDA is on record as referring to themselves as overburdened, underfunded, understaffed, and in possession of no real power to make a difference during recalls, because even Class 1 recalls are “voluntary.” If you are a food manufacturer, packer, or distributor, you are more likely to be hit by lightening than be inspected by the FDA. You are perfectly free to continue to sell and distribute your poisoned product, whether it has been poisoned accidentally or intentionally.

The reality is that the Salmonella Saintpaul outbreak is a brutal object lesson in the significant gaps in our ability to track and protect our food supply. We are ill prepared for a crisis, regardless of who poisons us.

Somewhere between the farm and your table, our Uncle Sam got lost.

TK: I personally think the government's response would more more robust in the event of a food terror attack. In fact, the first thing I would do would be to put Jack Bauer on the case ASAP. 24 hours to solve the case, not 24 weeks. Seriously, taking a serious flight of fancy here, wouldn't it be great if Jack Bauer ran traceback investigations for the FDA? Turn off the cameras in the interrogation room, Chloe - Jack has some work to do.

Jack, where are are you?

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Chat - Amy Philpott on the WPPC

Amy Philpott of United Fresh Produce Association took time this a.m. for a Fresh Talk "chat" session about the upcoming Washington Public Policy Conference (Sept. 10-12), among other topics.


:02 AM me: Hi Amy r u there?
amyphilpott1: Hi!
9:03 AM me: Thanks for taking time to give us an update on the upcoming public policy conference for United - via "chat mode"
9:04 AM amyphilpott1: Thanks for the opportunity - I love the new format!
9:05 AM me: Before I ask you the particulars about this year's event - what's the general ratio of attendees who have never been to a WPPC and those who are regulars?
9:07 AM amyphilpott1: We typcially get about 10% first-time attendees. This year, we are running at about 12% new attendees.
9:08 AM me: Interesting... and Robert mentioned the other day that registrations were running quite strong..what's the update there?
9:10 AM amyphilpott1: We are actually running ahead of last year with nearly 300 registered attendees and two weeks to go - last year we had about 300 total.
9:11 AM me: This has been quite a year for the industry - and for United staff - in dealing with the salmonella outbreak, among everything else - how has it been personally for you in helping to manage media issues related to that big story?
9:16 AM amyphilpott1: The industry does so many great things. It is hard when issues such as outbreaks detract from the many healthy, safe products that we do deliver everyday. Staying on top of the latest information, correcting misinformation, providing data, and helping the media understand that is exhausting - but I truly enjoy working to get the industry's message out.
9:18 AM me: I think what you and others do is not an easy task and a big industry service, of course. back to the WPPC. what do you hear from first time attendees about the event - what do they come away talking about?
9:23 AM amyphilpott1: It never fails - every year I hear it from first-time attendees, "This conference is the most incredible eye-opener! These issues are so important to our industry and being here in DC is an incredible experience." I think most people are put off by politics until they realize that they can have an impact. The WPPC is the perfect venue - we do all the logistical work and attendees just focus on helping the industry and their businesses...of course, we manage to slip in some fun too!
9:25 AM me: This year the agenda inlcudes a visit to the FDA - quite a coup...do we have confirmation on what FDA officials will represent the agency - that might be a tough crowd for them...

7 minutes
9:32 AM amyphilpott1: No doubt it will be an interesting meeting, but the purpose is to engage in consructive, two-way dialogue. We have a unique opportunity here so it can't just be a gripe session - we have to forge a foundation from which a longer-term working relationship can grow. We've done that as an association, but now it is time for members to take an active role. FDA has said that they "know it is an important event and definitely the right people will be there."
9:33 AM me: Amy, you have been generous with your time as usual. If people want to find more about the event and the agenda, where can they go to find the info? And thanks again for another "chat"..
9:34 AM amyphilpott1: Just go to our home page www.unitedfresh.org and click on the blue WPPC Capitol dome logo.
9:35 AM me: Thanks again..we'll see you in DC then
amyphilpott1: Thanks! See you there and it was good "chatting" with you again. ciao

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Produce promotions - summer deals aplenty

Consumers better enjoy summer produce deals while they can get them, and there is a pretty broad range of bargains available right now.

The weekly food ads in the Kansas City market featured "mega-fresh" savings from Hy-Vee, with a three day ad (Aug. 21-23) for bananas at just 39 cents per pound and a 5.6 ounce container of Oregon blackberries at $1.98. Meanwhile, the Aug. 20 to 26 ad featured homegrown muskmelon at 3 for $5 and Colorado peaches at $1.38 per pound. Olathe, Colo. sweet corn was featured at 8 for $2.88, with mangoes at 3 for $2 and thompson seedless grapes at $1.28 per pound.

Hen House countered with locally grown seedless watermelons at $3.49 each and a locally grown peaches at $4.50 per basket.

Price Chopper's three day sale (Aug. 21-23) featured red seedless grapes at 99 cents per pound and Dole classic salad mix at 10 for $10(!!??), while their weekly ad (Aug. 20-26) highlighted peaches for 99 cents per pound and new crop California bartlett pears or California red or black plums for $1.19 per pound.

All in all, some pretty attractive summer fruit bargains this week.

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Rabobank: Nationwide traceability would help

Here is the link to the Rabobank news release on fresh produce safety. What follows is the summary from the release:


NEW YORK (Aug 13, 2008) – Awareness, not occurrences, of food contamination increases, according to new podcast and Rabobank report, “U.S. Ag Focus: Food Safety in Fresh Produce.” In the podcast and report, Rabobank Food & Agribusiness Research and Advisory Assistant Vice President Marieke de Rijke examines U.S. Food Safety. “Several factors play a role in the severity and awareness of food contamination outbreaks in the fresh produce sector: media, increasing consumption, imports of fresh produce and changing population demographics,” said de Rijke.
Later......

As of Sept. 30, mandatory Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) for fruits and vegetables will come into effect, which means fruits and vegetables will have to be labeled at the retail level. Retailers will be required to provide and display a clear sign indicating a product’s country of origin. A positive side-effect of this government regulation would be an improved ability to trace back sources of food contamination. “There is no guarantee that fruit and vegetables are 100 percent safe and without risk and it is important for consumers to be aware of this,” said de Rijke. “However, if you consider how much fresh produce is being consumed, outbreaks are a very rare occurrence.” (This information begins at 5:40.) Moving forward, improvements in traceability, such as a nationwide traceability system, would help the FDA locate and contain outbreaks more quickly and more accurately. In addition, it would minimize health risks and help maintain consumer confidence in the safety of fresh produce.

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Headline roundup - Rabobank on U.S. traceback and a new salmonella outbreak?

If you are a regular reader, you know I update my headline links periodically at the bottom of the blog. Here is a roundup of headlines I snatched from the Web today. Plenty of interesting items, including the meeting of chemists to explore phytochemicals in f/v, a Rabobank report piling on about the slow U.S. traceback system, coverage of a new salmonella outbreak in New Mexico, an L.A. Times piece about how foodborne illness outbreaks have convinced retailers to toe the line on food safety because of the risk of consumer lawsuits and more.



Consortium formed to expand recycling options for bioplastics

Destructive fruit fly found in SGV

National chemistry meeting looks at f/v phytochemicals

Rabobank: U.S. traceback system "slow, inaccurate and difficult"

Brambles declines with growth concerns

New Salmonella outbreak in Sante Fe

Questions remain about salmonella outbreak

Sold on food safety

US in recession has housing figures plunge

Risk of recession has stimulus fades

Obesity continues to rise in most states

Food costs weigh on schools

Organics growing despite downturn

Five financial costs of obesity


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