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| Photo: chooyutshing, Flickr |
On Tuesday, the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) released its list of Top 10 riskiest foods policed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. According the the report, the items on the "FDA Top 10" account for nearly 40-percent of all reported foodborne outbreaks since 1990. The CSPI is a non-profit food safety and public health organization.
The FDA regulates nearly 80 percent of the nation's food supply including fruits and vegetables, seafood, egg and dairy products and most packaged foods.
But are they being overly cautious? Read the list after the jump.
The Riskiest Foods Regulated by the FDA are:
1. Leafy Greens - After the heavily publicized spinach recall in 2006 because of E. Coli, food safety experts have a special place in their hearts for leafy greens.
Slashfood thinks: Just wash your salad!
2. Eggs - Urging against undercooked or use of raw eggs due to the risk of salmonella.
We think: Egg-heads may become uneasy about the "no over easy" advice.
3. Tuna - Raw, undercooked fish or improper storage temperatures are to blame here.
We think: Having to eat anything above a medium-rare cooked tuna steak might be worth a stomach virus.
4. Oysters - Oyster-induced illness is most often linked to being harvested from Norovirus-contaminated waters.
We think: Taste outweighs risk. Even Michelin-rated the Fat Duck faced this problem earlier in the year.
5. Potatoes - Most outbreaks were linked to cross-contamination issues in restaurant preparation.
We think: Since the popular starch is grown in the soil, make sure to scrub it down (sans soap) prior to eating.
6. Cheese - Salmonella was the most common hazard among cheese products -- urging against the consumption of soft cheeses and unpastuerized milk that could contain bacteria.
We think: Foodies revel in all things Brie, Camembert and queso fresco -- bacteria gives it the flavor!
7. Ice Cream - The report says this is most likely due to the use of undercooked eggs in homemade ice cream.
We think: If you're concerned, there are plenty of ice cream recipes out there without eggs.
8. Tomatoes - Tomatoes are the poster child of foodborne illness, even to the point of being wrongly scapegoated for the 2008 Salmonella outbreak later linked to jalapeno and serrano peppers.
We think: With all produce, wash thoroughly before using in that summer tomato salad. If feeling extra cautious, cook them to kill bacteria.
9. Sprouts - The Center for Disease Control (CDC) and FDA have particularly warned those at high risk for complications of infection with Salmonella and E. coli (the elderly, children, and those with weak immune systems) not eat raw sprouts.
We think: Steer clear if you're worried.
10. Berries - Concerns over infections from berry workers but the berries on the list.
We think: Wash your berries just before you eat them, not before as they have a strong tendency to mold -- and examine them thoroughly before consuming.
Surprisingly absent from the list were peanut butter and cookie dough -- two products notably recalled earlier in the year for the the presence of salmonella and E. Coli respectively.
Which foods (if any) are you most worried about? Let us know in the comments!
10-07-2009 @8:48PM Adam Fields said... "Just wash your salad!"
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10-07-2009 @9:00PM Greyhoundgrrl said... For berries, you can eliminate the mold problem and the bacteria problem in one fell swoop by following Harold McGee's advice to boil them before storing: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/26/dining/26curi.html
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10-07-2009 @9:05PM Adam Fields said... That was supposed to be "Just wash your salad!" -- this doesn't work, since the contamination comes from infected sewage runoff, it gets into the leaves through the roots.
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10-07-2009 @9:19PM Katie said... Washing doesn't make a difference... spinach is very porous and the e-coli can penetrate it.
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10-08-2009 @4:22PM Matt said... DItto. Contaminants in greens, oysters, eggs, tomatoes, and sprouts are all due to growing them with contaminated soil or water. You could soak them in bleach and not kill the internal pathogens.
(Warning: Do not soak your food in bleach.)
More than half of all egg outbreaks occurred in commercial food service, where they can take one contaminated egg and mix it with dozens of uncontaminated ones, then not thoroughly cook them and contaminate the food of hundreds of people with a single bad egg as the bacteria multiply. From the report:
“Half of all egg outbreaks occurred from restaurants and other food establishments. While proper egg handling and cooking should destroy most pathogens, serving eggs raw or ‘runny,’ or leaving egg dishes
at improper holding temperatures (such as on a breakfast buffet) can allow the bacteria to multiply.
“Notably, the largest egg outbreaks occurred in prisons, with an average of 143 people reported sick in each outbreak. Catered events also had large outbreaks, averaging almost 60 people reported to have been sickened.”
As for tuna, your assessment of “raw, undercooked fish” and dismissing that with “having to eat anything above a medium-rare tuna might be worth a stomach virus” could not be more wrong. From the report, again:
“Scombroid, the illness caused by scombrotoxin, was by far the most common cause of illness related to tuna dishes, affecting over 2300 people who were reported to have been sickened, according to CSPI’s Outbreak Alert! database. Fresh fish decay quickly after being caught and, if stored above 60 ° F, begin
to release natural toxins that are dangerous for humans. Adequate refrigeration and handling can slow this spoilage, but the toxin cannot be destroyed by cooking, freezing, smoking, curing, or canning. Symptoms of scombroid poisoning can include skin flushing, headaches, abdominal cramps, nausea, diarrhea, palpitations, and loss of vision.
“Notably, scombroid illnesses frequently involve fresh product. These products are subject to HAACP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points), a safety system in which hazards are identified and steps taken to control them. As a naturally-occurring toxin, scombrotoxin is foreseeable and should be properly addressed by HAACP. Tuna’s appearance in the FDA Top Ten suggests that FDA’s seafood program needs to more effectively address this hazard.”
You were right that improper storage is a leading cause, but the bad storage can come long, long before you ever see the tuna in a market.
Don’t be misinformed, read the actual report for yourself:
http://cspinet.org/new/pdf/cspi_top_10_fda.pdf
And read Marion Nestle’s recent post about the high human cost of unsafe food, like the 22-year-old woman who ate tainted hamburger and is now paralyzed from the waist down, unlikely to walk again:
http://www.foodpolitics.com/2009/10/the-high-human-cost-of-unsafe-food/
And then remember that hamburger food illness didn’t even make the top ten list of the biggest outbreaks. Blowing this off is a serious disservice to readers. You say, “We think: Foodies revel in all things Brie, Camembert and queso fresco—bacteria gives it the flavor!”
The report says, “Pregnant women should be particularly cautious about consumption of soft cheeses (such as feta, Brie, Camembert, blue-veined, and Mexican-style cheese), which can carry Listeria. Listeriosis can cause miscarriage, often without the mother experiencing any symptoms. Linked to at least four outbreaks from cheese since 1990, listeriosisis vastly underreported, since overt symptoms of infection can be mild in those who are not particularly at risk. Those most at risk include people who are immunocompromised by pregnancy, as well as by another underlying health condition or treatments like chemotherapy. For the elderly, however, Listeria can cause severe illnesses, with high rates of hospitalization and death. For high- risk consumers, foods likely to carry Listeria, like soft cheeses and deli salads, should be avoided or heated before consuming.
“Outbreaks from cheese products occur most frequently in private homes.”
As a 42-year-old man who is not immunocompromised (and not going to get pregnant), I might enjoy some Brie. But I have a friend who’s been trying to get pregnant for years, at great emotional and financial expense, and she finally is. You think she should give that up for “flavor” in cheese?
It’s a complicated issue, and oversimplifying it to “bah, eat what tastes good” is irresponsible.
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10-09-2009 @1:02AM michele said... Thank you, Matt, for your comment. You said much of what I was thinking but in a more informative, less inflammatory way!
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10-09-2009 @2:55AM Ellie said... Egg-heads (as you call them) can make soft eggs safely with pasteurized eggs.
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10-24-2009 @9:55PM wtliftr said... The best way to insure the safety of fresh fruits and vegetables is to grow them yourself. MANY of these can be grown in containers if you don't have much space. Check out thegreenthumb.org if you want seeds and seedlings!
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