It seems obvious that the US would easily be able to monitor all food and trace back any case of contaminated food to the source…not the case at all. With all of the horrendous ground beef/other red meat, poultry and cheese recalls we had in 2009, it honestly makes me nervous touching any animal product. Trader Joe’s in Darien, CT which is about 10 minutes away from me, had a ground-beef recall late last year. That registered pretty close to home. All of the ‘09 incidences lead back to the inhumane treatment of animals on site and caused us to be more alert. I know several people who have given up ground beef because of the repeat recalls. As of last year, our big industrial plants have found a way to remove salmonella and e.coli for good, the antidote? AMMONIA, so eat up! For more info. on the ammonia meals:http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/31/us/31meat.html . So, the beef industry is taking the route of chemically treating our meat to prevent disease, and our government is too busy to put a solid system in place to trace contaminated foods and hold businesses accountable.
Most of us rely on the big media outlets for our information; WSJ, New York Times, Fox News, CNN, etc. Most media outlets refrain from covering these news stories or touch upon them for a brief minute. To get regular updated info. on recalls in our country and around the world, visit: http://www.foodsafetynews.com/ . Obama just released details for his 2011 budget and among his objectives was Food Satefy; the FDA will see a 30% increase in funding. The President wants to direct more spending toward food safety efforts, specifically toward prevention of outbreaks, detection, quicker response and punishment of manufacturers. While this is certainly a step in the right direction, there is big concern over the lack of funding for the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), who is responsible for front-line inspections and recalls. I think the media is being overly optimistic and needs to look at the big picture. For the full details on the food safety budget: http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2010/02/obama-boosts-food-safety-in-fy2011-budget/
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