The value of health standards and regulation

Beware of E.coli on leafy greens from Taylor Farms

I don’t know about you, but I really like not getting sick when I eat fresh fruit and vegetables.

Yesterday I read a horrifying substack newsletter about the increased incidence of E.coli in US-grown salad vegetables (due in part to extremely lax regulatory oversight mechanisms:

An outbreak of E. coli across fifteen states that sickened at least eighty-eight people, killed one, and hospitalized many, including a nine year old who almost died from kidney failure, didn’t warrant a press release from the FDA … Our food system in the US, which has always been precarious, is getting more dangerous. As I was writing this piece, the news broke that the FDA is ending most of its routine food safety inspections

The country is only finding out about the full scope of this E. coli outbreak because of public records requests filed by attorneys in nine different cases against Taylor Farms, a Salinas-based grower believed to be the source of the poop lettuce, whose findings were then shared with NBC News. Last October, the very same Taylor Farms issued a voluntary recall of their onions, which are supplied to McDonalds, because of another E. coli outbreak that hospitalized over a hundred people and killed one.

They essentially fired all FDA communicators from the top to the bottom, from the commissioner's office on down to the centers and the divisions. They can’t tell us about all the shit covering our food if they fire everyone responsible for testing, tracking, and then announcing where all the poop is.

Regulation and safety practices are disappearing from slaughterhouses, factories, and everywhere else as legions of federal workers are fired and federal funds are pulled

I was feeling smug about our fresh produce here in Aotearoa New Zealand until I clocked the name of the company - Taylor Farms. I’m a salad aficionado who is a fan of their kale chopped salad.

These are the salad kits from Taylor Farms that are available in NZ supermarkets:

screenshot of Taylor Farms bagged salads available for sale in NZ supermarkets

Taylor Farms also supply supermarkets in NZ with raw salad lettuces:

bagged lettuces from Taylor Farms that are for sale in NZ

And they have a range of stir-fry kits and basic coleslaws:

the two types of coleslaw from Taylor Farms

Will I be purchasing their salad kits in the foreseeable future? Absolutely not! While their bagged salads may not have yet been recalled, it really isn’t worth the risk. E. coli is nasty, nasty bug and it pays to avoid it where possible (the instances from Hawkes Bay when E. coli got into the water supply are warning enough).

In the interests of public safety and awareness raising, below I list some easily achievable ways to ensure your produce purchases do not make you ill from E. coli

Removing E. coli from vegetables

To kill E. coli on fresh produce the best thing you can do is to cook them thoroughly. If you like to eat raw fruit and veggies, then following proper cleaning and food safety techniques will help to reduce incidence of E. coli intake. Suggested methods to achieve this are as follows:

Wash Thoroughly with Clean Water

Rinse under clean running water for at least 30 seconds. Use your hands or a soft brush to scrub firm produce like carrots or cucumbers.

Use a Vinegar or Lemon Solution

Mix 1 part white vinegar or lemon juice with 3 parts water. Soak produce for 5–10 minutes, then rinse with clean water. This will reduce surface bacteria.

Hydrogen Peroxide Solution

Food-grade 3% hydrogen peroxide can be diluted (1:1 with water) and used as a soak. After soaking, rinse the produce thoroughly. This is best on tougher produce like carrots.

Peel the outer layers

This is useful for produce that have outer layers to peel, like lettuce, cabbage, or onions. Simply remove the outer leaves where contamination is more likely. Don’t forget to wash your hands after touching the outer leaves! Peeling the outer skin from carrots and potatoes is also useful.

Cook via blanching or boiling

Boiling produce for 1–2 minutes effectively kills E. coli. Blanching is a cooking method of brief boiling followed by plunging the produce in cold water. This is good for leafy greens, but it does affect texture.

Cook thoroughly (best way to eliminate E. coli completely)

Heating produce to at least 71°C (160°F) kills E. coli completely. Cook vegetables fully if risk is a concern (especially for those with weakened immune systems).

And of course, check the country of origin and avoid US-grown produce.