"food poisoning" news and stories

What's the matter with Kansas? Well, the salsa served at some of the restaurants in the state packed too much of a punch -- not from spicy jalapeños, but because it was laced with pesticide, reports KTKA News. Not funny, really. A married couple who worked at two different branches of Mi Ranchito restaurant, near Kansas City, was arrested after poisioning the salsa there. The husband, who confessed he was trying to get revenge for losing his job, faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison with a fine of up to $250,00. His wife, the one who actually slipped in the Methomyl-based poison, has already been sentenced to 87 months in jail, with a whopping penalty of $478,000 in restitution. Small comfort for the 36 patrons, some of them children and seniors, who suffered anything from cramps and nausea on up to symptoms so severe they had to be taken to hospital.

Food poisioning usually means a few hours of gut-wrenching unpleasantness, but what if the consequences are more dire? A recent dealth in France has people wondering: Should the law step in?

When French teenager Benjamin Orset died from food poisoning in January, the cause was traced to a meal he'd eaten the day before his death at a Quick burger joint in Avignon, reports UPI. Now the manager of that restaurant faces not only accusations that hygiene standards were ignored, but charges of involuntary homicide.

The outbreak of E. coli poisoning connected to romaine lettuce has spread to Tennessee, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 23. (There are seven other probable cases associated with the lettuce.) And what's worse, the strain of E. coli involved in the outbreak is rare and difficult to diagnose, so officials think there may be even more cases going unreported.

There have been two recalls of romaine lettuce related to the outbreak, both by distributors who purchased lettuce from the same Yuma, Ariz., farm. Ohio-based Freshway Foods announced a 23-state recall of romaine lettuce last week, while Vaughn Foods of Moore, Okla., announced a recall Monday.

Spitzhauben Chickens Photo: birdyboo/Flickr

• Poor cluckers. A new report says that poultry is the main culprit behind U.S. food poisoning.
• Roof gardens are changing skylines from New York to San Francisco.
  
• It may not have spurred the passion of "Before Sunrise," but one European train ride led to an Endive Cheese Tart.
• Thailand's Isan region cools things down with a Green Papaya Salad before getting hot and spicy with Larb.
• Troubled times have led to downsized weddings and homespun matrimonial eats like teeny burgers and jalapeno poppers.
• Berlin is host to a new world of hidden, homegrown restaurants.
• Locanda Verde, a new restaurant in downtown Manhattan, inspired this recipe for a Sugar Snap Pea Salad,
  
• The Minimalist adds a peanutty crunch to chicken soup.
  
• Move over, California! Long Island wineries like the 9-year-old Shinn Estate Vineyards are finally getting some respect.

After the recent salmonella outbreak killed as many as eight people and sickened more than 500, some are wondering whether it's time for more widespread irradiation of food.

Irradiation. Doesn't have a positive ring. More typically associated with words like "cancer" and "Chernobyl" than words like "peanut butter" and "spinach." But the FDA, along with a number of medical professionals and food scientists, say irradiation may be the best way to prevent food-borne illness outbreaks, and, despite the scary associations, it's really and truly safe.

Irradiation of food involves brief exposure to gamma rays or X-rays to kill bacteria or other pathogens. It does not leave any traces of radiation in food. But some say it destroys nutrients and merely serves as a cover-up for shoddy sanitation practices in food factories. Others say it's a useful and vastly underutilized tool that could prevent some 5,000 deaths and 325,000 hospitalizations due to food poisoning each year. Right now irradiation is approved by the FDA for spinach, iceberg lettuce, meat and several kinds of imported produce, but is rarely used.

What do you think? Should we be irradiating the food supply or not?

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