Chris Walker Vs. Barry Estabrook And Dangerous Fruit

“The FDA has consistently shown that it is more interested in protecting the interests of the agriculture industry than the health of American consumers.”

- Barry Estabrook

Barry Estabrook, who published the quote above, is someone I deeply admire. Aside from being a Contributing Editor for Gourmet, he writes a fantastic column entitled “Politics of the Plate.” Estabrook and I share similar interests – he articulates them much better than I do – and I’m sure he and I could have one hell of a conversation over a couple beers.

Today, Estabrook posed the question I’m sure all of us have wanted to ask: “How in the hell does salmonella get inside a tomato?” I thought about tackling this baffling issue myself however; Estabrook does such a great job that, well, I don’t need to open my mouth about it.

READ: POLITICS OF THE PLATE: ROTTEN TOMATOES, by Barry Estabrook.

UPDATE 06.23.08: The number of tomato-related sicknesses has risen to 552 since early April. The last reported case was in early June. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) still hasn’t determined the source or cause of the outbreak.

I found some interesting quotes in a recent MNSBC news article which I thought were worth sharing:

“It might be impossible to trace the ultimate source of the tainted tomatoes, the Food and Drug Administration’s food safety chief warned Wednesday.”

“[T]omatoes are among the hardest foods to trace in an outbreak, because … they’re sold without tags to help trace their suppliers.”

“[T]he FDA has asked Mexican health authorities to check whether they have any cases of this exact strain of salmonella Saintpaul, the subtype involved.”

The FDA: working hard to keep you safe…after you get sick. While the hunt to find the outbreak is appreciated, it still doesn’t answer Estabrook’s question, and your question, and my question: how did Salmonella get inside the tomato? A friend speculated it could be a result of workers shitting in fields, their feces present in the soil as the tomatoes begin to grow. That would certainly lead to an interesting investigation on working conditions, wouldn’t it? Hopefully the FDA will do the right thing and figure out what caused the outbreak, and hopefully we, as American consumers, won’t let them off the hook until they do.


Posted: June 11th, 2008 | Author: Chris Walker | Filed under: Food | Tags: | No Comments »

No Comments on “Chris Walker Vs. Barry Estabrook And Dangerous Fruit”

  1. 1 Jen said at 4:24 pm on June 12th, 2008:

    Ok, so I said this exact same thing about the USDA on your previous post- but I also feel this way (only much MUCH stronger) towards the FDA. They are total rat-bastards. In my personal opinion, of course.

  2. 2 Anonymous said at 12:23 pm on June 17th, 2008:

    did you read the Estabrook column? man is on a crusade.

  3. 3 Anonymous said at 12:23 pm on June 17th, 2008:

    the “new” Estabrook column that is.

  4. 4 Chris Walker said at 11:13 am on June 23rd, 2008:

    Jen: As I’m sure you know know, it’s just a convoluted game of whose interests they’re protecting, and how much money they’re trying to save, which keeps them from being more pro-active in keeping us safe.

    Anonymous: I read all of Estabrook’s columns, and the man definitely knows his stuff.

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