Green Options

After my family and I enjoyed several handfuls of pistachios at a get- together last weekend, I was surprised to hear yesterday about the latest food recall.

Federal food officials are warning Americans to avoid any food containing pistachios because of possible salmonella contamination.  (Just like the recent problems with peanuts.)

All of this food recalling makes a person wonder if anything is really safe to eat anymore?

As a mom that often blogs about the latest going on in the news in regards to child safety, I was especially saddened by the story on Root today of Hamil R. Harris, a reporter for The Washington Post. His son Issiah is one of the victims of the recent peanut butter salmonella scare. He came very close to to losing his toddler to this horror and ironically because he is so used to being the one covering the news he never imagined that something like this would touch his family.

Tummy aches, fever and diarrhea plagued his son but Harris was skeptical that it could be linked to the salmonella poisoning. The family could not deny something was seriously wrong though after little Isaiah began to fill his little diapers with bloody stools. They saved the diapers so that tests could be run. The culprit they believe was tainted peanut butter crackers.

The salmonella contaminated peanut butter recall has been in the news for weeks, yet recently it has been discovered that the federal government sent potentially tainted peanut butter and roasted peanuts to schools in California, Minnesota and Idaho in 2007.  It is unclear how much of this product remains in schools.

Yesterday, the Department of Agriculture suspended all business with Peanut Corp. of America, and schools are checking cafeterias and vending machines for old stock. David Shipman, acting administrator of USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service stated Peanut Corp. “lacks business integrity and business honesty, which seriously and directly hinders its ability to do business with the federal government.”

With all the bad news lately about salmonella-tainted peanut butter in processed food products, isn’t it high time we had a peanut butter story we could feel good about?

MaraNatha Nut Butters offers a wide variety of natural and organic nut butters which are super-yummy.  And they are not involved in the current PCA recall.

Every day, the news is just getting worse and worse.  More and more products, including natural and organic ones, are being recalled in the US and Canada.  Our faith in our entire food supply system is being tested.

But there is some good news.  Not all food manufacturers use peanut products from the Peanut Corporation of America.  And while we certainly should not become complacent, there is also no reason to throw the baby out with the bathwater… or, in this case, with the peanut butter.

As if salmonella wasn’t enough to cause the massive peanut butter recall, federal inspectors have found mold, cockroaches, and a leaky roof at the Blakely, Georgia plant owned by Peanut Corp. of America (PCA).

The peanut butter recall has been expanded to include all products PCA products from 2007 on.  Over 400 products have been recalled including ice cream, Asian sauces, and dog biscuits.  Even a few organic products are on the recall list.

I’m usually not phased by food recalls, including the recent peanut butter recall, because they rarely affect natural food companies.  I don’t eat Little Debbie crap, and I certainly don’t eat Keebler products.

Today, however, I discovered a natural, organic product I occasionally eat on the peanut butter recall list: Clif Bars.

In the wake of the latest salmonella outbreak in peanut butter products, the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) is calling on President Obama and Congress to “bring the food safety program at the Dept. of Health and Human Services into the 21st century.”

“This latest outbreak proves again that FDA is woefully inadequate to the task of protecting American consumers from unsafe food. It presently inspects low risk peanut butter plants rarely, or not at all, leaving the job to state inspection agencies.” - CSPI

I would never in a million years feed my children Little Debbie products, but I remember eating them as a child.

Yesterday, Little Debbie announced the recall of its snack products containing peanut butter due to concerns of salmonella contamination.

Salmonella can be deadly, especially to children, and the company has responded with a voluntary recall of cookies, cakes, ice cream and other foods with peanut butter. The focus of the recall is peanut paste, in addition to peanut butter, produced at Peanut Corp.’s Blakely, Ga., facility. The peanut paste, made from roasted peanuts, which is often an ingredient in cookies, cakes and other products.  Little Debbie has included its Peanut Butter Cheese sandwich cookies and Peanut Butter Toasty sandwich crackers in the recall.

An outbreak of Salmonella Typhimurium has spread to 42 states in the US, with almost 400 people infected by the bacteria and up to 20% of the victims requiring hospitalization.

The CDC, in conjunction with the USDA, the FDA and the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), is investigating the multi-state outbreak. The illnesses were said to have begun between September 3 and December 29, 2008, with most illnesses beginning after October 1.

Those infected with salmonella experience fever, diarrhea, and abdominal cramping about 12 to 72 hours after infection. The illness usually lasts anywhere from four to seven days. The list of states and possible foods involved have not yet been released.

This week from our friends at ZapRoot: The FDA needs to have their heads examined. We respond to the numerous Chinese comments. Explore the world through Google Earth’s Environment section.

This week’s show links:

Eco Child’s Play - CA Fails to Pass Chemical Ban in Baby Products
Eat Drink Better - FDA Allows Producers to Irradiate Spinach & Lettuce
BPA Opinions
Corn Syrup All Natural
Google Earth Environment