Afraid of Sprouts and Cremating Your Summer Burgers?

It is impossible to read the news lately without seeing headlines regarding food safety or foodborne illness outbreaks.

Just a little while ago, Dole announced a recall of Italian Salad Blend due to potential Listeria contamination.

On June 7th, the FDA released a letter that was sent to the Kellogg company regarding Listeria found in a Georgia plant.

And unless you have been living under a rock, you are probably aware of the outbreak of a rare but deadly strain of E. Coli that has claimed 29 lives. 5 cases have been confirmed domestically, and potentially the first death.

So what is a concerned eater to do? Not just think “it’ll never happen to me.” According to the CDC, 1 in 6 Americans contracts a foodborne illness every year and 3,000 individuals will die from one. Over half of those deaths are accredited to ‘Unspecified Agents,’ otherwise known as stuff we don’t know how to track. Of the known conditions, Norovirus is responsible for the most illness while Salmonella is responsible for the most death. Death is always more common in the elderly, the young, and those that are immune-compromised. The outbreaks also often spike in the summer months.

Seriously Debbie Downer?! Where is the bright side??! Coming!!

Most people believe that food illnesses all stem from consumption of beef. Undercooked beef, to be exact. In fact, poultry and leafy greens are the two foods most commonly associated with foodborne illness.

Food contamination often occurs through cross-contamination at the source (like in the case of leafy greens being grown near livestock) or cross-contamination in the home (preparing raw vegetables and raw chicken on the same surface). These are the tips that I follow to keep myself and my family safe:

• Wash produce well, but most importantly, ensure you are never putting raw vegetables on the same surface as raw meats or poultry. Even if salads say “pre-washed” give ‘em a whirl in the salad spinner. Think of it like a carnival ride for the greens.
• Keep meats and poultry and plastic bags when in the fridge. I know this is wasteful and generally not ideal, but the paper wrappings meats come in can leak and be another source of cross-contamination.
• If meat or fish smells off or has an off-putting color of texture, chuck it. Again, wasteful financially but not worth the GI trouble it may cause you.

In terms of cooking, this is where I become a bit more relaxed. *As a side note, I would never serve my grandmother or my child (if I had one) rare meat. The fatalities experienced with foodborne illness are often in those without the immune system to fight the pathogen. Stick with medium for anyone at greater risk for contracting illness.*

• Chicken should always be cooked through until juices run clear. Just do it. Remember the top causes of illness?
• Any ground meats need to be cooked until fully browned.
• And now, beef. Oh beef. How I love a good carpaccio or tartare. I have watched many a horrified reaction when I bite into my rare steak or burger. However it is not often that I eat a burger or steak and when I do I am familiar with where the meat is coming from and trust the quality of the markets (usually local) where I shop. This is a personal risk I take, and I am not here to try and turn you to the bloody dark side. However I would ask that you take this post seriously when considering where the majority of foodborne illness comes from. It isn’t always hamburger.

In terms of eating out, I choose restaurants that focus on a high standard of quality and ideally, source their produce and meats locally. I am a firm believer that the less “handling” a food experiences, the lower the chances are of that food coming in contact with something that will make me sick. Think about it – if you go to a local orchard in the fall, pick, apples, bring them home, wash them and eat them, the number of hands those apples have been through is pretty small. If you chomp into an apple from Chile, well, you see what I mean. This is also why tracking the source of foodborne illness is so difficult- think of how many hands a food passes through before reaching your mouth.

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