First it was peanuts... now it's pistachio's

[Prrkitty]

http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/03/31/pistachio.caution.salmonella/index.html

All these salmonella issues are starting to be a BIG issue for our food supply! Might someone be deliberately adding the salmonella into our food supply?

[rock_nog]

Doubtful. First off, regarding the peanut thing, the conditions at those plants were disgusting as all hell. Could be a conspiracy, but I think it's far more likely mouse droppings got into the peanuts, and mice are a great source of salmonella.

Secondly, I really haven't noticed any great upsurge in the number of food contaminations. Seems like there's always some food or another being recalled for something, and 11 times out of 10, it goes back to unsanitary conditions. Some machine wasn't cleaned properly, or someone didn't follow protocol, or what have you.

We as consumers just need to demand higher safety standards. Which reminds me, I'm still a little appalled by what happened with the peanuts. Rather than follow the news and learn which peanut products were safe and which weren't, people just stopped buying peanut products altogether. Companies that had nothing to do with the salmonella outbreak got hit pretty hard, too. Really ticks me off, because it's basically the consumers punishing those companies for playing by the rules. It sends a message - "Why bother with safety, businesses? Even if you follow the rules and ensure you have a safe product, if someone else screws up, we'll make you pay for it."

[Prrkitty]

It was just a thought... so I voiced it. It's just happening more and more - or at least it seems it does (big company food issues).

[Xyvol]

Seems like alot in a short period of time. A company our restaurant uses recalled some of thier products because of a salmonella outbreak. Luckily we have not had any problems.

[Lilith]

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[Archangel]

I totally agree with Lilith on what she said above.

But Salmonella is serious, so here is what you do.

Only buy unroasted nuts and roast them at 60 degrees C for a half a hour.
I boil my closed shelled nuts in water for 1 hour myself. It makes them taste nummy. Try it.

Some sea/salt and honey and you set. ;)

[AtmaWeapon]

I think this' is' a s'erious' problem; I ca'nt figure ou't how the devil you get 'samonella when han'd'ling nut's. Yo'ud think with the le'vel of educa'tion in America we would h'ave 'solved thi's problem!

[Modus Ponens]

Here here atma's.

Not to point out an error on Prry's part, but if you're going to write the word "peanuts" without an apostrophe, why do you think you use one in "pistachio's"?

[Prrkitty]

I have a hard with the 's and s' ... sorry for the mis-spelling y'all.

If I remember right... 's is contraction for something... it's = it is

It should have been pistachios ...

[rock_nog]

Apostrophes are for contractions and possessives. I've always wondered why sometimes people use them for plural words.

[AtmaWeapon]

I blame "it's" and "its" for screwing things up. Bunch of troublemakers that lot.

[rock_nog]

Update on the peanut story - the plant that is responsible for the tainted peanuts has been issues a fine.

http://www.newsadvance.com/lna/news/state_regional/article/peanut_plant_in_salmonella_outbreak_fined_14.6m/15077/

I'm sorry, but that's it? If I punched someone in the stomach, I'd go to jail. How is it these people basically punch 700 people in the stomach and walk away with nothing but a fine? It's no wonder we keep seeing things like this, the companies responsible have no incentive not to break the law here. Why worry about regulations or anything like that when the most you're gonna get is a glorified slap on the wrist? And that's not even considering the other peanut companies who lost business as a result of the fiasco even though they were playing by the rules.