Food Safety

We all know that food safety is important. Eating contaminated food brings very upsetting gastric results. All of us likely have had at some time the unpleasant effects of food poisoning. Some forms of contamination can lead to death.

When I was young (a long time ago :), the concern I heard was about leaving meat and dairy out of the refrigerator, where it could culture harmful bacteria. These days we hear of massive food recalls, of both meat products and vegetables. What has changed that fruits and vegetables are now killing people like meat has for ages?

Recently there was a massive recall on lettuce and cantaloupe. Food that I have not considered at risk for e-coli contamination before. Thousands of tons of food has been destroyed in large multi-state food recalls. How is it possible that people in 18 states were made sick, 72 ill, 13 deaths, and that the contamination was linked to one farm? (web) The answer rests in how food is processed and packaged. We have monopolized and consolidated the food industry to a point that only a few companies control the entire food system. This is even of real food such as cantaloupes! (See my article on edible food like substances.)

It is really unfortunate that any food is contaminated, but it is worse to have this one contamination have such a large reach across the country! When I was a child, food was processed for a more local distribution area. Today, large companies will compete offering the lowest prices to grocery outlets. The way they obtain efficiency is in consolidating the packing processes to one large facility. They truck the food into and out of that facility. If contamination begins, it now has access to spread to a very large geographical distribution area. In this way, costs are lowered, but food safety risks are increased. Having to move food around like this is part of the reason we spend 10 calories of petroleum for every calorie of food. (Commercial fertilizers and pesticides made from petroleum, and fuel to power the massive equipment also consume petroleum.)

The corporate multi-national food industry responds to contamination issues as a mechanical problem. They gather their engineers together and come up with a bacteria control solution. Perhaps they can douse the food with stronger chemicals to kill the bacteria. Perhaps they can heat it so hot the threat is killed, no matter what happens to food quality. (After all if it does not look fresh, just add some artificial coloring chemicals.) It is a vicious cycle of adding chemicals to fix a broken system, and no one is looking at the root cause of the problem. It was the consolidation and mechanization that created the potential for cross contamination in the first place.

I do not believe that the solution to food safety is government regulation. This is not a problem the government will be able to correctly fix, because they are not looking at the root issues of what is wrong. Any response that does not bring food back to local responsibility is doomed to put more band-aids on a festering wound.

Eating locally grown food just makes so much sense! You eliminate the massive waste in transportation. You reduce the potential of cross contamination. You support your local economy, not the international corporate conglomerates bottom line. You know who grew your food. You know that no poisons were lathered upon what you will eat. You know it is safe to eat. The ultimate in eating locally, is to grow your food yourself.


On the farm

Perhaps we should turn our attention to more practical matters: how do we assure food safety on our own farms? Below are some ideas I would like to suggest:

1. Keep animal products separate from vegetable prep areas. I would suggest dedicated cutting boards for each, and don't mix the two.
2. Clean and disinfect sinks between uses, especially if preparing animal products.
3. If canning, pressure cook low acid vegetables per USDA canning time and pressure recommendations.
4. Keep produce as cool as possible, to the ideal temps per the food item.
5. Wash hands often and for an adequate duration.
6. Clean and sterilize lugs and storage bins between uses.

How safe is your food? Eat local.