Last week a University of Minnesota study showed that antibiotics given to livestock can end up in vegetables and pose a health threat to consumers.
The Minnesota study examined the use of animal manure as a fertilizer for vegetable crops.
The new CSPI study indicates produce-related outbreaks tend to be larger than poultry-related outbreaks, and sicken more people, sometimes hundreds at a time, CSPI stated.
Fresh produce triggered 554 outbreaks, sickening 28,315 people. Of those 554 outbreaks, 111 were due to Salmonella. Although poultry has historically been responsible for far more Salmonella infections, produce seems to be catching up, CSPI stated.
From 1990 to 2001 poultry accounted for 121 Salmonella outbreaks and produce accounted for 80. But in 2002 to 2003, produce accounted for 31 Salmonella outbreaks and poultry accounted for 29.
The figures were gathered from CSPI's alert database, which contains information on 4,500 infection outbreaks related to food between 1990 and 2003.
CSPI's database includes only outbreaks where both the food and the pathogen are identified, so its data represents only a fraction of the total burden of foodborne illnesses.
It's just one more nail in the coffin of large livestock factory-style farming, in my personal opinion. Later this month, I'll have a Very Special Report available regarding hog farm factories in general, and one very specific factory currently under construction in Jasper County, Indiana. This is one shocking report you definitely will want to read. Stay tuned!
Source: Fresh produce an increasing source of Salmonella, group says - FoodUSA ProductionDaily 24/11/2005
Keywords:
salmonella outbreaks, salmonella in USA produce, factory farming, foodborne illnesses, food poisoning, livestock manure salmonella food poisoning, livestock manure dangers
