The Truth About American Food Safety
The phrase When it rains, it pours isn’t one you like to see applied to outbreaks of foodborne illness, yet here we are. The summer started with a diarrhea-causing parasite called Cyclospora cayetanensis, which infested iceberg lettuce. Then came news of Shiga toxin–producing bacteria in organic frozen berries, and a Salmonella outbreak linked to Whole Foods guacamole that eventually got traced to tainted jalapeños. (Pico de gallo, salsa fresca, and a variety of spicy dips have also been implicated.) Ricotta-style cheese was recalled for Listeria. Both Salmonella and E. coli were found in products from the aptly named Everything Sprouts. And 10,000 cases of lightly fried tofu were flagged for potential contamination with printing ink.
TL;DR
- Multiple foodborne illness outbreaks occurred this summer, including those linked to iceberg lettuce (cyclospora), organic frozen berries, Whole Foods guacamole, ricotta cheese, sprouts, and fried tofu.
- Government systems for preventing foodborne outbreaks are reportedly being weakened due to funding cuts, staffing reductions, and experienced employees leaving.
- While overall foodborne illness statistics are in line with recent history, the cyclospora outbreak has reached unprecedented numbers this year.
- There is disagreement among experts regarding the speed and transparency of government agencies like the FDA and CDC in responding to the cyclospora outbreak.
- Historical precedents suggest that significant investments in food safety often follow major disease outbreaks.
- Despite the scale of the cyclospora outbreak, the disease is generally self-limiting, with a relatively low number of deaths reported.