Question:
Has there been any determination of how the Listeria contamination occurred recently with the Colorado grown cantaloupes? As much detail as anyone has would be appreciated. I assume this is a case of the crop having some contamination on the exterior of the fruit. Also, does anyone have a listing of which crops are historically most often the targets of food born disease? I think this might be useful info for us gardeners to be aware of. Thanks!
Bernie Strehler Molokai Hawaii
Listeria contamination question
According to the medical websites, listeria on food is most often present because of the use of manures from infected animals. Listeria on or in many foods is never noticed because the foods are cooked before eating, but obviously cantaloupe isn't one of them. The disease can be spread by manure applied as fertilizer or by "direct application" from an infected animal.
There is a good overview at http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/listeriosis-topic-overview.
-Rich
Thanks a lot for your reply Rich. And the link you provided was excellent; very helpful.
It was a surprise to read that the fruit that is contaminated cannot be safely cleaned by washing so as to be safe to eat. The article writes, "Do not try to wash the food because there is no way to ensure that the listeria is just on the surface. Listeria cannot be seen and it does not change the way the food looks."
If anyone has a listing of the primary vegetables and fruits that statistically suffer from food borne disease most often, that would be of interest.
Again, thanks!
Bernie Strehler Molokai
From the article I'm sure you read that while it can be spread by manure from cattle and birds, I think. It is actually a soil born bacteria so it has the potential to be on any veggie that touches dirt. Most people who get it don't even realize they are infected, I don't know why this strain is so much "stronger"
Bernie- you were wondering about a list of veggies and fruit where it can be found. It is also found in unpasterized dairy products and precooked food. It's basically everywhere, all of us have probably been exposed to it but never knew it.
I found in reading that the age of those deceased from listeria was
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I am curious if these victims had other health issues. And later in the same article, People who've died have ranged in age from 48 to 96 years, with a media age of 87.
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http://vitals.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/10/18/8386160-cantaloupe-listeria-toll-climbs-again-123-sick-25-deadMost illnesses have occured in people older than 60.
In reading, I found this article... http://vitals.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/10/20/8403525-consumers-couldnt-have-washed-away-cantaloupe-contamination-experts-say
and thought this comment was interesting
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No amount of washing, scrubbing, bleaching or peeling would have cleaned cantaloupes contaminated by Jensen Farms' packing practices enough to remove listeria bacteria...
and later in the article
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It's not clear whether people were infected by bacteria that clung to the fruit's porous, bumpy rind, whether the germs somehow migrated into the flesh of the fruit, or whether people spread contamination through the fruit by slicing it with a knife, Powell said. Good hygiene and food safety practices can lessen the chance of infection, but the contamination shouldn't be there in the first place.
I think the perfect solution will be to grow your own when possible or buy locally and perhaps know the growers. JMO ~pod
Unless this problem has been ongoing for decades and we never knew it, how do you explain millions/billions of produce for decades being eaten without all the scare?
I wonder what Jensen Farmers packing practices were that set them apart from other farms?
Apparently they had an assortment of problems that have been uncovered. http://vitals.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/10/19/8397950-dirty-equipment-blamed-for-deadly-outbreak-in-cantaloupe
I still suspect that those who were the sickest or deceased had other health issues that inhibited their system to fight off the listeria.
And I agree with Lisas' comment above regarding exposure
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It's basically everywhere, all of us have probably been exposed to it but never knew it.
If one is healthy to begin with, there would probably be little or no ill effect.
The 3 largest food contamination incidents have been caused by listeria, not e coli. Does anyone know what happened with the lettuce contamination in Ca. ?
yeah, but think about it - you're eating food that's been planted, grown, and harvested by people (many times migrants) who probably make less in a week than some people make in a day - do you think they're going to care about walking out of the field to go to the bathroom? what about 'washing' their hands?
actually, I just thought of one more reason to promote growing your own food - YUCK!
SoFlCom-there was a thread about that recently. I dont think Listeria is normally found in the human intenstinal tract. Hmmm... Still have to check out Pod's link cant do it on this computer.
If you go to the links Pod provided it gives a much clearer picture of how this contamination happened. Very little listeria was found in the field it was found in the unsanitary, cool, moist conditions of the processing plant.
One more link if anyone is seriously interested in Listeria in how it affects our health in general. How to prevent, what it is, etc.
http://www.medicinenet.com/listeria/article.htm