Flash Bulletin 1: Symptoms of an Agricultural Crisis

Something’s wrong when our food supply fosters the proliferation of pathogens

First of two briefs looking at critical topics to be explored in depth at the teach-in.

From CAFOs to Salad Mix
Confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs) are perfect sites for pathogens to mutate and proliferate. Antibiotic-resistant bacteria or new strains of pathogens are developing in these factories in a large part because antibiotics are used for the purpose of making animals gain weight quickly and cheaply. Animals are allotted more antibiotics when tightly packed into quarters with concentrated manure, toxic dust and gases that often lack sunlight (Animals on pastures do not have the same health issues.). Between 30% and 70% of all antimicrobials are used as feed, for supposed “therapeutic,” “non-therapeutic” and “growth-promoting” purposes. Until there are universally accepted definitions for these terms, the efficacy of antimicrobials is uncertain and dangerous; over 2 million people contract resistant infections and of those, 90,000 die each year in the US, according to the Center of Disease Control.

Reducing the loss of antimicrobials is as simple as not allowing them to be used as feed (and of course, having Congress make this a priority). More profound changes would involve enabling successful marketing by pasture-based producers, in part by revitalizing of our decentralized, small-scale meatpacking infrastructure. In an ironic twist, there are insufficient numbers of government food safety inspectors to fully staff the inspection of plants.

Once mutations like E. coli 0157:H7 occur – it was first identified about 30 years ago – these pathogens arrive in our food supply. Most often, cases involve ground beef, but such mutations are tainting spinach, salad mix and most recently chopped lettuce.

Convenient Greens Need Kid Gloves
More surfaces for microbial invasion are present in pre-cut and pre-chopped leafy greens than in bunched spinach, or whole lettuce heads. Since salad mix, baby spinach, and industrial sized portions of iceberg lettuce are bagged, an ideal environment exists for pathogens to grow. According to Community Alliance for Family Farmers’ analysis of data provided by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, since 1999, 98.5 percent of the reported California-sourced E. coli 0157 illnesses were traced to processed, bagged salad. In addition, industrially shaving leafy greens from the ground endangers nearby frogs that may stray from their habitat.

Products as perishable as leafy greens should be treated like meat – never allowing a break in the cold chain from the processor to the kitchen – and should be discarded if temperatures rise. Decreasing shelf life for bagged products, now stretching to as much as 17 days, would not only cut down on the opportunities for pathogens to grow but also cut down on nutritional losses. Consumers unwilling to take time to make a salad the old fashioned way would be smart to purchase bagged greens long before the shelf life runs out. Never eating them from a bag, whose expiration date has passed, no matter how well they look, also makes for good digestion and is good sense.

Consolidation versus the Road Less Traveled
Anytime there are large volumes of food brought together and shipped great distances, ready-made pathways are created for the spread of pathogens. A plant washing 26 million servings of salad every week put out the E. coli 0157:H7 tainted spinach two years ago that affected consumers in 28 states. Locavore Michael Pollan declared, “We’re washing the whole nation’s salad in one big sink.” The tomato, in reality the Mexican pepper, contamination this summer made people sick with Salmonella in 43 states, the District of Columbia and Canada. Both of these products were fresh cut, not cooked.

Here lies the conundrum. Mass-marketed products that have increased our exposure to pathogens are cheaper to produce (not counting external costs to public health and the environment) and more convenient to use. When in season, local farmer’s markets, road-side stands or community supported agriculture programs can be almost as convenient, and the food has not been mixed in huge batches or traveled thousands of miles before ending up on our plates. Fresh cut local salad mix should still be treated as very perishable. Weighing the risks and carbon foot print of mass-produced foods, local may turn out to be a better food safety buy.

Next Bulletin: Scapegoating Wildlife at the Expense of Food Safety Protections.
coming 11/10/08

The purpose of the bulletins is to shed light on critical topics that will be explored in depth during the Teach-In, and to promote a greater understanding of food safety issues across America.