From a March 10, 2009 New York Times article:
"The former first lady, Laura Bush, insisted that fresh, organic foods be served in the White House, but did not broadcast that fact to the public, according to Walter Scheib, who served as executive chef under Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush. 'She just didn’t talk much about it outside the house,' Mr. Scheib said of Mrs. Bush."
Hmmm... so while Laura is insisting that only organic food be served in the White House, hubby's policies are almost what one could call anti-organic? Perhaps she didn't mention it outside the White House so as not to upset her friends such as Rush Limbaugh or Matt Drudge?
And why did the American tax payer have to pay for organic food for a White House that enabled or even forced the "common folk" (i.e. us) to eat contaminated unhealthy industrially-produced garbage at times?
Showing posts with label salmonella. Show all posts
Showing posts with label salmonella. Show all posts
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Meat madness
Wow... South Korea's government has been almost wiped out by a mass "resignation" of ministry officials from the public outcry and protests over a deal to allow U.S. industrial beef imports to resume. I was feeling rather chagrined when I found out that the U.S. had pushed industrial beef on to the unsuspecting Korean people as part of a trade agreement. But... apparently, they weren't as unsuspecting as I thought, as the Korean government has found out, much to its chagrin. Too bad the average U.S., consumer won't stand up to its own government and protest the lousy meats that are forced upon him or her; you'd think with all the current health problems and the massive meat recalls that people would finally realize what's going on and say no to industrial meat. But oh well...
In other news, perhaps caused by industrial meat contamination: tomatoes recall. But, at least it's apparently prompting the FDA to finally want to do its job, and the government to financially support the FDA so that it can do so.
Perhaps the FDA will be able to head off what appears to be the next major food disaster before it wipes out too many people. Stay tuned for MRSA.
In other news, perhaps caused by industrial meat contamination: tomatoes recall. But, at least it's apparently prompting the FDA to finally want to do its job, and the government to financially support the FDA so that it can do so.
Perhaps the FDA will be able to head off what appears to be the next major food disaster before it wipes out too many people. Stay tuned for MRSA.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
The agro-industrial complex
An important independent report, Putting Meat on the Table: Industrial Farm Animal Production in America, by the Pew Charitable Trusts and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health has been released, concluding that "Industrial animal farming in the United States needs to make many major reforms in order to protect public health and the environment."
+ The report criticized "the agro-industrial complex" in regards to:
+ their over-and mis-use of antibiotics
+ the pollution created by overcrowded factory farms
+ the spread of disease in overcrowded feedlots
+ the inhumane treatment of confined animals
+ the industry's influence on agricultural research and governmental regulation
... amongst other things
Read the report in its entirety here: http://www.ncifap.org/_images/PCIFAP%20FINAL%20REPORT.pdf
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Nuts
(This article '"Raw" almonds aren't, really' is excerpted from "What's really in your food?" from the Independent Weekly.)
The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently required that all almonds produced in the United States be pasteurized, including nuts labeled "raw." The rule went into effect September 1, despite protests from health-conscious consumers who prefer unprocessed nuts and small-scale growers who can't afford the equipment, which costs between $500,000 and $2.5 million.
The move follows two Salmonella outbreaks attributed to raw almonds in 2001 and 2004. Critics of the rule point out that both incidents were the result of faulty practices at large-scale commercial farms. Small-scale and sustainable practices—including mowing and mulching to control weeds, instead of using chemical herbicides—naturally prevent the spread of harmful bacteria more effectively than post-harvest treatment, they say.
The Almond Board of California, a governing body representing all almond growers in the state, pushed for the change. Small growers complain that the board disproportionally represents the needs of the large producers.
A spokesman for the USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service says that the agency simply responded to the almond board's request. "We basically move at the behest of industry," spokesman Jimmie Turner says. "If the industry calls and says they want a standard or a marketing order, we take that request, and normally we do what's called a notice in the Federal Register. We seek public comment, and based on that comment, there can be a marketing order established."
The same process is followed for all food stuffs, Turner says.
The Cornucopia Institute, a Wisconsin-based farm policy research group leading a campaign to convince the USDA to overturn the pasteurization rule, contends that labeling treated almonds as "raw" is deceptive. More than that, the group argues that it epitomizes the industrialization of our food supply.
"This is just the opening salvo of corporate agribusiness wanting to sanitize all of our food," says Mark Kastel, co-founder of the Cornucopia Institute. The impetus, Kastel says, is the economics of large-scale production. In many cases, such operations utilize growing and cultivation methods that provide much greater opportunity for contamination.
"After the fact, they want to use these technologies ... so they can sanitize our food supply, but it will do great damage to our food and, because of the infrastructure costs, will put out of business small and high-quality growers and independent processors," Kastel added.
To comply with the regulation, almond producers can either steam the nuts or fumigate them with propylene oxide (PPO), the almond board's preferred process. PPO is recognized as a possible human carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer. It is banned in the European Union, Canada, Mexico—and much of the rest of the world.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration does not require labeling of foods treated with the fumigant, and while packages of almonds may contain the disclaimer "pasteurized," there isn't likely to be any indication by which process the nuts were treated.
The only way consumers will be able to distinguish how their "raw" almonds were pasteurized is by the organic label. Regulations mandate that foods bearing the "organic" seal cannot be treated with PPO.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently required that all almonds produced in the United States be pasteurized, including nuts labeled "raw." The rule went into effect September 1, despite protests from health-conscious consumers who prefer unprocessed nuts and small-scale growers who can't afford the equipment, which costs between $500,000 and $2.5 million.
The move follows two Salmonella outbreaks attributed to raw almonds in 2001 and 2004. Critics of the rule point out that both incidents were the result of faulty practices at large-scale commercial farms. Small-scale and sustainable practices—including mowing and mulching to control weeds, instead of using chemical herbicides—naturally prevent the spread of harmful bacteria more effectively than post-harvest treatment, they say.
The Almond Board of California, a governing body representing all almond growers in the state, pushed for the change. Small growers complain that the board disproportionally represents the needs of the large producers.
A spokesman for the USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service says that the agency simply responded to the almond board's request. "We basically move at the behest of industry," spokesman Jimmie Turner says. "If the industry calls and says they want a standard or a marketing order, we take that request, and normally we do what's called a notice in the Federal Register. We seek public comment, and based on that comment, there can be a marketing order established."
The same process is followed for all food stuffs, Turner says.
The Cornucopia Institute, a Wisconsin-based farm policy research group leading a campaign to convince the USDA to overturn the pasteurization rule, contends that labeling treated almonds as "raw" is deceptive. More than that, the group argues that it epitomizes the industrialization of our food supply.
"This is just the opening salvo of corporate agribusiness wanting to sanitize all of our food," says Mark Kastel, co-founder of the Cornucopia Institute. The impetus, Kastel says, is the economics of large-scale production. In many cases, such operations utilize growing and cultivation methods that provide much greater opportunity for contamination.
"After the fact, they want to use these technologies ... so they can sanitize our food supply, but it will do great damage to our food and, because of the infrastructure costs, will put out of business small and high-quality growers and independent processors," Kastel added.
To comply with the regulation, almond producers can either steam the nuts or fumigate them with propylene oxide (PPO), the almond board's preferred process. PPO is recognized as a possible human carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer. It is banned in the European Union, Canada, Mexico—and much of the rest of the world.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration does not require labeling of foods treated with the fumigant, and while packages of almonds may contain the disclaimer "pasteurized," there isn't likely to be any indication by which process the nuts were treated.
The only way consumers will be able to distinguish how their "raw" almonds were pasteurized is by the organic label. Regulations mandate that foods bearing the "organic" seal cannot be treated with PPO.
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