The CDC website is not yet updated, but wire stories are reporting that the number of people infected by salmonella linked to certain types of fresh tomatoes has grown to 277 people from 28 states and the District of Columbia.’
If I was growing tomatoes, this is what I’d say …
I started worked with Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers in 1998. The general manager at the time, Denton Hoffman, saw the U.S. export market growing rapidly, and told me of his recurring nightmare … one he wanted to prevent.
"The phone rings and it’s a retailer on the U.S. east coast. He says he’s got a customer who says she got sick from eating my Ontario greenhouse tomatoes. What do I say?"
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That was the challenge Denton laid out for my group in 1998. Using a risk analysis approach, we assessed the risks for all 220 or so Ontario greenhouse producers, developed management schemes, and communicated what we were doing to buyers, consumers, whoever.
We learned lots of things about building trust with individual growers (which means visiting their farms, not plopping them in a classroom and trying to make them HACCP experts), coming up with practical, farm-based solutions, and being on call 24/7 for when those phone calls come in (that’s me and Amber Leudtke, back in about 2001, in a greenhouse, above right).
But I could never get the group to take the final step and really promote their food safety program. I suggested putting a url on the stickers at retail that would link to a series of videos showing whoever wanted to see them the food safety practices undertaken by the growers.
During the latest Salmonella-in-tomatoes outbreak, a rep for Nature Sweet, a grower in San Antonio e-mailed me and said, what should we do? This grower does great things for food safety. So I told her.
The rep wrote me back last week and said,
"I spoke with you last week briefly about the tomato outbreak. You made the suggestion about putting our company’s safety practices on blogs, YouTube, etc. Well, we took your advice and have created a video that is up on YouTube. Here is the link to the video if you’re interested to view it, http://www.youtube.com/naturesweettomatoes."
The video is also below. Sure, I’d rather see a farmer than the marketing dude, and the intro will have to be redone for future use, but the rest is great.
And they spelled it out in a press release:
Our greenhouse growing practices are the foundation of our food safety program:
• The water supply used in our greenhouses is self-contained, filtered, and secure. Water from each well and each greenhouse farm is continuously monitored and tested for purity by our staff and by third party experts.
• We use only natural fertilizers.
• Our tomatoes are picked under sanitary conditions.
• Food safety begins with the seed. Our tomato seeds are always naturally selected, disinfected and germinated under sanitary conditions.
• Within each greenhouse, we control and monitor all intakes – water, nutrients, and pest control.
In addition to our greenhouse practices, we also employ the following food safety initiatives:
• Regulate all aspects of tomato production and processing, as well as employ the best agricultural practices.
• Monitor all of our systems continuously to ensure that our produce exceeds the highest food safety standards and FDA guidelines. In addition to our adherence to HACCP-based safety practices, we follow rigorous training, growing, packing, and shipping standards.
• Use a food safety coding system that provides us with traceability of every case and pallet of tomatoes to the greenhouse in which they are grown. In addition, each individual selling unit has a comprehensive food safety tracking code.
• Test, monitor, and audit our products, our water, our processes, and our procedures regularly with staff and third-party experts.
I can quibble about details. But it’s a great start, and, like transparency in risk assessments, now that it’s out there, it can be improved. It’s a lot better than just telling consumers to wash their tomatoes or it’s local so it’s safe.
There’s been lots of silly statements in the latest Salmonella-in-tomato outbreak. For example, at right is the sign from The Pad in Topeka, Kansas (photo by Stephanie Maurer). I have no idea which Dept. of Ag. inspected the tomatoes, and I’m not sure what they thought they’d find by looking. I’ll be revisiting the risk communication highlights in the coming weeks.
One press release stood out yesterday. Health Canada decided to "remind Canadians of the importance of proper handling and preparation of fresh tomatoes in order to prevent foodborne illness."
Uh-oh. Sure washing can remove some amount of pathogens and dust, but not much. As Robert Tauxe, Deputy Director, Centers for Disease Control Division of Foodborne, Bacterial, and Mycotic Diseases, pointed out at a session sponsored by the New York Academy Of Sciences in April, "Washing might be logical, but it turns out that it removes very few pathogens."
Reminds me of past outbreaks when various groups have tried to advise consumers to control problems that were quite out of their control — like Salmonella in tomatoes (see, pathogens in produce; once inside they ain’t being washed off at all).
The Health Canada effort concludes by stating
"… there are as many as 13 million cases of food-related illnesses in Canada every year. Many of these illnesses could be prevented by following proper food handling and preparation techniques."
Why do the PR thingies feel it necessary to add on such a meaningless statement about proper handling and preparation in an outbreak that does not appear to involve food handling and preparation? Food safety for produce begins on the farm, and then all the way through the farm-to-fork system. But especially, for fresh produce, on the farm. Canadian taxpayers deserve better.
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Yesterday Doug appeared on NPR Science Friday. The topic was the recent outbreak of Salmonella that has now officially sickened 228 persons in 23 states.
A podcast of the episode is now available online, and can be heard at this location.
The number of people sick from salmonella-tainted tomatoes jumped to 228 in 23 states Thursday as the government learned of five dozen previously unknown cases and said it is possible the food poisoning contributed to a cancer patient’s death.
Twenty-five people have been hospitalized as a result of the U.S. outbreak, which has been linked to raw plum, Roma and round tomatoes.
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The Food and Drug Administration has not pinpointed the source of the outbreak. With the latest known illness striking on June 1, officials also are not sure if all the tainted tomatoes are off the market.
The FDA’s food safety chief, Dr. David Acheson, said,
"As long as we are continuing to see new cases come on board, it is a concern that there are still contaminated tomatoes out there."
The FDA is directing consumers to its Web site — http://www.fda.gov — for updated lists of the safe regions.
Also safe are grape tomatoes, cherry tomatoes and tomatoes sold with the vine still attached. That is not because there is anything biologically safer about those with a vine but because the sick have assured investigators that is not the kind of tomato they ate.
What if you did not go to the store armed with a list, or the store or restaurant manager cannot assure that any plum, Roma or round tomatoes came from safe regions?
"If you don’t know, don’t take the risk," Acheson said.
Cooking also kills salmonella, but the FDA is not formally advising people to cook suspect tomatoes for fear they will not get them heated thoroughly.
(The possibility also exists for cross-contamination during preparation — dp).
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Meanwhile, export-quality tomatoes labeled "Ready to Eat" in English flooded Mexico City markets on Thursday after a salmonella scare in the U.S. stopped them from crossing the border.
Associated Press reports that most consumers do not even know about the U.S. salmonella scare. And those who do, rarely care. Mexicans are accustomed to washing all produce because the vegetables sold on the national market are not held to the same standards as those certified for export.
Sergio Martinez, a 40-year-old bricklayer, said, "What the U.S. doesn’t want is what we see here. They always send the best stuff over there, from avocados to tequila. What ends up here is second-rate. Almost all vegetables are contaminated with something because they water them with sewer water and put on a lot of chemicals."
Agriculture Secretary Alberto Cardenas told Televisa network Thursday, "The Mexican tomato is safer and cleaner than ever."
Even U.S. officials agree that certified Mexican exporters are among the safest in the world. Their fields are irrigated with fresh water, and their packing plants are staffed by workers covered head-to-toe in sterile clothing. Inspectors monitor the process at every step.
Rebekah Denn of Seattlepi.com, a barfblog.com fan (see below), writes,
With a tomato-related salmonella outbreak in 16 states, the Neighborhood Farmers Market Association got this interesting question:
"Are tomatoes from the University District farmer’s market safe to eat, given the FDA’s recent warning about tomatoes & salmonella?"
The F.D.A. has linked the nasty illness to raw red plum, red Roma and round red tomatoes. The feds say it’s OK to eat those varieties if they’re sourced from regions that are not associated with the outbreak, clearing tomatoes from places like California and Canada. Washington did not make the all-clear-as-far-as-we-know list.
The market association is checking in with its greenhouse growers on the topic, and sent out this reply to the query:
"Yes, our local farm tomatoes are definitely safe. The outbreak is likely due to the wide use of some kind of composting medium on big factory farms that was contaminated – but none of our market farmers are connected in any way to those kinds of operations. In fact, the tomatoes at the markets right now are all hothouse tomatoes, which makes them even safer, as they are grown in wood bark. Also, our farmers are mostly growing heirloom varieties, both in their hothouses and in their fields.
The FDA Web site also notes that homegrown tomatoes are safe. Our market farmers are essentially growing homegrown tomatoes: they are not huge operations but rather smaller family farms, using safe, healthy and sustainable growing methods. These farmers live on their farms, pick the harvest themselves and eat the food they grow as well as selling it to local markets."
I checked in with Doug Powell, associate professor and scientific director of the International Food Safety Network at Kansas State University — but to me better known for "BarfBlog," an acerbic and opinionated and evidence-based blog on food safety.
His take on the farmer’s market go-ahead? Not so fast. He wrote:
"Whether your produce comes from around the corner or around the globe, contamination must be prevented beginning on the farm. Ask your tomato supplier:
— What do you do for food safety?
— Do you or your suppliers test wash water for bacteria? Irrigation
water?
— What soil amendments are being used?
— Do you or your suppliers train your staff on handwashing?"
But wait! Aren’t the farmer’s markets at least safe from the current salmonella outbreak, I asked, if the farmers are truly growing different varieties than the ones identified with the problem?
Powell said yes, although there’s no basis (yet, I say) for the speculation that big factory farms caused the problem. In general, though, when it comes to food safety, "there is no evidence that sustainable and local is safer."
But wouldn’t outbreaks from small local farms at least be easier to contain and easier to track?
Maybe, Powell wrote, but it’s a tough comparison to make. "We have no sense how often they happen because they are small and don’t get picked up."
So, talk to the people who grow your produce. Ask them questions. The advantage of the farmer’s markets is, at least at the markets you actually get that chance.
Barfblog: the acerbic and opinionated and evidence-based blog on food safety. I like that.
"For lunch today I was forced to order a BLB sandwich, which is bacon, lettuce, and more bacon. I’m thinking of ditching the lettuce too, just to be safe."
Bada-bing.
Check out the clip below.
During last night’s monologue on Jimmy Kimmel Live! Jimmy talks tomatoes, with an awesome public service announcement from the Broccoli Council at the end.
I’m all for marketing microbial food safety at retail.
Julie Zawisza, a spokeswoman for the Food and Drug Administration, told The New York Times late Tuesday,
"We are getting closer to identifying the source or sources."
Dr. Patricia Griffin, the chief of the disease centers’ enteric disease epidemiology branch, was cited as saying no one knows whether food has gotten more dangerous or whether the growing number of outbreaks results from better surveillance, and that both may be true.
The disease control agency has confirmed 167 salmonella cases in the current outbreak. But Dr. Griffin said the agency estimated that only 1 in 38 cases were ever reported to the authorities, so the problem was likely to be greater.
Keith Warriner of the University of Guelph told New Scientist.com that pathogens like Salmonella have probably evolved to cope with life outside our intestines. Escherichia coli O157:H7 strain thrives on leafy greens such as spinach and lettuce, while Salmonella tends to do best on fleshier fruits and vegetables.
The bacteria probably come from groundwater contaminated with animal faeces, he says. Once Salmonella gets on and into a tomato, the fruit acts like an incubator. Bacteria divide even in the cool temperatures of packing houses. "If you get a few samples into the internal tissue, then they will grow for sure," Warriner adds.
Meanwhile, I’ve been to Toronto and back to Quebec City, with a flurry of media activity along the way. Canadian Broadcasting Corporation’s The National caught up with me in Toronto and aired the story on the national news last night (upper, right). Unfortunately, my Kansas State hockey T-shirt logo was not included in the camera shot.
Last night, from 1-2 a.m. EST, I was the guest on Coast to Coast with George Noory which is broadcast on some 500 AM radio stations across the U.S.. Besides the government and alien conspiracy explanations of how Salmonela gets in tomatoes, it was a lot of fun, and we covered a lot of the issues. If anyone out there heard the show, please pass on your constructive comments.
This morning it was off to the CBC studios in Quebec City for an appearance on Newsworld. I proudly wore my barfblog T-shirt.
And if you’re a French professor or graduate student from Kansas and you’re in Quebec, you have to partake of the local food culture; that means poutine.
I just wrapped up a food safety talk at the World Congress for Processing Tomatoes. Delegates from 34 countries have converged in Toronto for meetings, mirth and merriment. The Salmonella in fresh tomatoes outbreak was up for discussion, but these are the processing folks — it’s all cooked.
This picture (right) was taken by in Cincinnati, Ohio, and posted on The Consumerist. Just weird.
And The Packer says today in an editorial that the source, not criticism, should be the top priority in outbreak.
Too vague. Too slow. Too aggressive.
All of the above criticisms may apply to the handling of the recent linkage of Salmonella Saintpaul to tomatoes by the Food and Drug Administration and various federal and state agencies.
Unfortunately, the criticisms are easy to level, but not so easy to apply in reality.
The FDA was too specific in warning consumers in Texas and New Mexico to avoid round red and roma tomatoes. Shouldn’t consumers in other states receive the warning? On the other hand, the warning was too vague. Many cocktail-style tomatoes are round and red. Many greenhouse tomatoes are round and red yet not sold on the vine, but the FDA was saying it was OK for consumers to eat tomatoes on the vine from greenhouses.
The New Mexico Department of Health was perhaps too aggressive June 4 in naming Mexico as the likely source of the product. At that time, the FDA stated it was impossible to say whether the tomatoes were domestic or imported.
And because the foodborne illnesses occurred over so long a stretch, the tomatoes very likely did not come from one single grower. There is a possibility they were contaminated somewhere along the supply chain.
Yet, despite the rush to a conclusion, there is legitimate criticism that parties have acted too slowly. This situation affects the entire tomato category. By extension, it affects products that are used with tomatoes, such as fresh basil and some salad items. A lot of people will lose a lot of money over this.
In outbreaks that decimate a category, it’s absolutely imperative to say the right thing at the right time.
There needs to be better coordination between state and national organizations. The overseeing parties must work closely with both the growing community and retailers to ensure that public comments do not unintentionally mislead consumers or create false perceptions.
The utmost importance is finding the source. Until then, all handlers are presumed guilty and suffer the consequences of lower sales.
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Since mid-April, 167 persons infected with Salmonella Saintpaul with the same genetic fingerprint have been identified in 17 states: Arizona (12 persons), California (2), Colorado (1), Connecticut (1), Idaho (2), Illinois (27), Indiana (7), Kansas (5), Michigan (2), New Mexico (39), Oklahoma (3), Oregon (3), Texas (56), Utah (1), Virginia (2), Washington (1), and Wisconsin (3). These were identified because clinical laboratories in all states send Salmonella strains from ill persons to their State public health laboratory for characterization. Among the 73 persons who have been interviewed, illnesses began between April 16 and May 27, 2008. Patients range in age from 1 to 82 years; 49% are female. At least 23 persons were hospitalized. No deaths have been reported.
At this time, FDA is advising U.S. consumers to limit their tomato consumption to those that are not the likely source of this outbreak. These include cherry tomatoes; grape tomatoes; tomatoes sold with the vine still attached; tomatoes grown at home; and raw red Roma, red plum, and round red tomatoes from specific sources listed at: http://www.fda.gov/oc/opacom/hottopics/tomatoes.html. Consumers should be aware that raw tomatoes are often used in the preparation of fresh salsa, guacamole, and pico de gallo, are part of fillings for tortillas, and are used in many other dishes.
FDA recommends that U.S. retail outlets, restaurants, and food service operators offer only fresh and fresh cut red Roma, red plum, and round red tomatoes and food products made from these tomatoes from specific sources listed at: http://www.fda.gov/oc/opacom/hottopics/tomatoes.html#retailers. Cherry tomatoes, grape tomatoes, and tomatoes sold with the vine still attached from any source may be offered.