E. Coli and Salmonella Continue to Threaten American Bagged Salad Greens

“The fact is there is no currently known way to guarantee the elimination
of pathogens on produce that is consumed without a cooking step or some kind of thermal treatment. That’s the only way to ensure you won’t have the E.coli or salmonella present and alive on something that you eat.”

- Trevor Suslow, Ph.D., UC-Davis

A joint UC Davis/USDA research project sampled crops such as this spinach in the Salinas Valley of California, as well as animal droppings and water. Genetic tests will be used to “fingerprint” and track bacterial contaminants such as E. coli O157:H7. Photo courtesy UC-Davis.

Spinach fields at the Natural Selection Foods LLC plant on Monday, Sept. 18, 2006, in Salinas, California. Spinach grown in the California Salinas Valley and packaged and distributed by two companies, including Natural Selection Foods LLC, were traced to the September 2006 E. coli outbreak that killed three people and sickened more than 200 others in twenty-six states. Image © 2006 by AP.

September 18, 2007 Davis, California - There are two events that have occurred recently. Dole Food Company, after a spot check discovery of E. coli, has issued an international recall of its "Hearts Delight" salad mix for bags stamped "best if used by September 19, 2007" and production code numbers, A24924A and A24924B.

Click here to subscribe and get instant access to read this report.

Click here to check your existing subscription status.

Existing members, login below: