Multiple Salmonella Outbreaks

Food-borne illness outbreaks have been recently linked to cucumbers, tomatoes, ground beef and eggs! (In the case of eggs, we have also been dealing with the H5N1 bird flu virus) It seems like every other week we are reading news about another food-borne illness outbreak. I just shared last week about the E Coli outbreak tied to romaine lettuce. 

The cucumber-related salmonella outbreak was caused by untreated irrigation water that was used to grow the cucumbers. Unfortunately, because we usually eat cucumbers and tomatoes raw, we are unable to kill any salmonella through cooking before consuming. 

Once again, I am left wondering if these outbreaks would have happened under a different administration that isn’t dismantling our food and safety laws and regulations. I do know that the future of food safety, given all of the cutbacks and downsizing of the FDA, the CDC, and the NIH is only going to get worse.

My advice: make sure you first rinse your vegetables, then soak them in a solution of diluted vinegar (1 cup vinegar:3-4 cups of water) for 5-10 minutes. Then rinse thoroughly with running tap water. If you’re not enjoying your vegetables raw, cooking them to a temperature of 145-165 degrees will also kill salmonella bacteria.

Try to avoid buying pre-cut, bagged, or packaged produce that isn’t refrigerated or surrounded by ice. Bacteria spreads faster at room temperature.

Empty Shelves at Whole Foods

I stopped into the Whole Foods Market in Garden City today and was surprised to see many empty shelves. It felt like I was back at a grocery store during Covid. The empty shelves are due to a cyber attack that disrupted the distributor’s operation. United Natural Foods is the main supplier for Whole Foods that experienced that cyber attack.

Isn’t it scary how impactful a cyber attack on a singular food distribution company can be? There is reason now more than ever to start growing your own food and not be so dependent on stores.