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If field workers aren't provided accessible sanitary restroom and handwashing facilities, isn't that their employer's bad? Not establishing and enforcing proper sanitation & handwashing protocols in food handling & processing facilities, isn't that the employer's responsibility? And hiring undocumented people in the first place, isn't that on the employers as well?
Food goes through several "owners" before it reaches the supermarket shelf.
And various farms harvests are combined.
Why do you think it takes the FDA so long to trace back the origin of these outbreaks ?
Day workers are long gone by the time the origin is found out.
Isn't that sort of what many 'average' folks think when they see 'organic' on the sign in the grocery store?
Do people really believe that the organic food which is sold in the millions of pounds has suddenly morphed from being 'pesticide/fertilizer/lord knows what laced' to being completely 'organic'? I find that hard to believe.
But the suppliers have figured it out...that they can put an organic label on anything, however spurious, and jack up the price a good bit, and folks will flock to it because it is 'green/organic'. It is inherently healthier, and good for them. And they are willing to pay up.
In nearly any activity in the modern world you need to follow the money to see what is really going on. It's a LOT less costly for me to spend a few million dollars lobbying the FDA to get them to 'believe' my paperwork, than it is to have the FDA come and inspect my production processes. Especially when I am pretending to be 'organic'.
I had to create an account here just because of this thread. I'm a farmer who does both conventional and organic on a Farm that ships all over the nation. I'd hate to go into anymore detail of what I grow or what store I'm in, but I guess it's a "big" operation.
The FDA doesn't monitor growing or organic status, the USDA does.
I wish it'd be more regulated, but there's just not enough manpower to do it.
Wasn't the issue in spinach a few years ago from a farm in Salinas valley? I only bring this up because country of origin may not be a litmus test for safety. I think it is best to purchase locally grown fruits and vegetables or even better grow them yourself.
No, it was Boskovich in Camarillo/Oxnard. An outfit that has been riddled with issues for a while with respect to recalls. Taco Bell has had quite a few PR nightmares thanks to them.
Ewwww, so the plants go straight from the fields to the grocery shelves without ever being washed or sanitized?
Do all American organic food growers have these food handler cards, live in sanitary conditions and wash their hands after going to the bathroom?
How can we be sure? How can us city-dwellers grow our own produce, I for one am surrounded by miles of concrete and HOA laws.
We don't need food handlers cards as we aren't preparing fresh cut fruits or vegetables to be consumed (like a salad like fresh express or a fruit bowl maker like del monte).
However, in the past couple years (like 3), we have introduced new regulations that I'm a huge fan of called GAP (good agricultural practices). We get harmonized GAP audits done by 3rd party auditors every day of harvest.
We also must compile and follow GAP handbooks which is basically a rule guide. These GAP books are requested by super markets prior to becoming a vendor. The market decides if its in depth and thorough/stringent enough before we're accepted.
On harvest days, someone in a truck comes out and audits us. They grab the book and go line by line to ensure we are following every detail and rule. They pass us and we fax the pass over to the market to stay compliant.
It isn't law yet, but the reputable markets require it. Hopefully it'll be standard in 2014. My GAP is 137 pages long btw and covers from my field to the market (includes my cooler, packaging and shippers).
If field workers aren't provided accessible sanitary restroom and handwashing facilities, isn't that their employer's bad? Not establishing and enforcing proper sanitation & handwashing protocols in food handling & processing facilities, isn't that the employer's responsibility? And hiring undocumented people in the first place, isn't that on the employers as well?
Not necessarily. Depends on the arrangements. If the farm is using contract labor, it's up to the labor company to supply 1 toilet and sink to every 5 workers (different sets for each sex btw) within 1/4 mile or 10 minute walk from the area in which they are working. Also to provide potable water and shade with seating.
If it is 1099 work, it's up to the farm. This is a labor law.
We have it included in our GAP to have ice included in the drinking water.
Food goes through several "owners" before it reaches the supermarket shelf.
And various farms harvests are combined.
Why do you think it takes the FDA so long to trace back the origin of these outbreaks ?
Day workers are long gone by the time the origin is found out.
It's smoke and mirrors.
The consumer never sees it, but on each box of produce there's a barcode that is scanable. On that barcode is the picking date, field number and worker block. Covered in our GAP. Everyone is required to keep the log for 6 months.
A recall should be sorted within 4 hours of a complaint because that's the rules we use on our mock recalls that we MUST initiate once per growing season.
We run a complex numbering system where when we get a call, I can identify the day, the location, field and exact worker. Even what 2 hour block of the day it was picked in.
It's no joke. Why it takes so long isn't on the farmer, most likely it's the FDA/USDA ensuring the claim is in fact from the produce by cross checking.
How many people automatically assume that certified organic = trusted and healthy? ~ Too many....
Is this finding a red herring just because it's an article calling out the dark side of certified organic products?
You are 100% correct that this could have occurred with any food.
Anyone who sells produce, just like the larger corporations should be forced to have their yields tested and certified, not be trusted by the producers signing a paper stating that their crops are healthy and safe to eat.
I can't speak for every farm, but I test my plants and fruit/vegetables every week. I'm looking for nutrition breakdowns and what amendments I should be supplementing my plants with. While they're testing for that, I just add microbrial tests (it's only $60 more). Might as well.
I should forewarn you though- 99% of contamination comes from the soil or worker. Not the plants.
Our water gets tested as well for free floating coliform and other lovely issues.
Easy answer is make the workers wear gloves. We shy away due to latex allergies of consumers.
Isn't that sort of what many 'average' folks think when they see 'organic' on the sign in the grocery store?
Do people really believe that the organic food which is sold in the millions of pounds has suddenly morphed from being 'pesticide/fertilizer/lord knows what laced' to being completely 'organic'? I find that hard to believe.
But the suppliers have figured it out...that they can put an organic label on anything, however spurious, and jack up the price a good bit, and folks will flock to it because it is 'green/organic'. It is inherently healthier, and good for them. And they are willing to pay up.
In nearly any activity in the modern world you need to follow the money to see what is really going on. It's a LOT less costly for me to spend a few million dollars lobbying the FDA to get them to 'believe' my paperwork, than it is to have the FDA come and inspect my production processes. Especially when I am pretending to be 'organic'.
If you saw the price disparity between the inputs on conventional vs. organic growing your realize the profit is t that much more.
1 gallon of fertilizer in conv. is $11. The equivalent is $136. Not to mention its 1/3rd as powerful.
Commodity prices do not reflect that same percentage difference. Now, we do save money in the sense that we can't use as much pesticides or annual soil fumigant, etc.
I know these were frozen berries, but speaking of organic generally (and notwithstanding this incident of contamination), one of the problems with organic is that the products often don't "move." They may be pesticide-free, but who knows how long they've been sitting on the produce shelf? That, plus transportation time, greatly diminishes any nutrient value.
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Not establishing and enforcing proper sanitation & handwashing protocols in food handling & processing facilities, isn't that the employer's responsibility? 
