Zero Risk Does Not Exist

Tomatoes may be fading from the headlines, but the damage has been done. At least now, however, we know that the round red fruit are not being blamed as the culprit of the latest foodborne illness outbreak. Instead the spotlight has shifted and jalapeño peppers are being eyed as the source of the Salmonella Saintpaul.

As everyone recalls, this dilemma began about two months ago when tomatoes were pulled from grocery store shelves and restaurant salads. Just after the announcement that the source of Salmonella may not be tomatoes, FDA lifted the tomato consumption advisory — weeks after consumers were warned not to eat specific types of tomatoes.

The FDA advisory hurt virtually all tomato growers, whether or not their tomatoes were associated with the outbreak, as was the case in California. According to Tom Nassif, president and CEO of Western Growers, tomato growers in the Golden State left fruit to rot on the vine or disced tomatoes into the ground. The market for tomatoes is bad, to say the least.

The situation is similar in Florida. Tomato growers in the Sunshine State are looking for compensation as the losses were nothing short of catastrophic.

The Next Steps

So now what? Some tomato growers lost significant amounts of money and consumers were less than happy about having one of their favorite summertime foods removed from grocery store shelves and salad bars.

I recently spoke with Christine M. Bruhn, director of the Center for Consumer Research in the Department of Food Science and Technology at the University of California-Davis, about this foodborne illness outbreak and consumer reaction to it.

She said the public still hasn't learned what it needs to from these events, as consumers look at outbreaks as isolated incidents. "Microbes know no boundaries," she added.

What Bruhn and others have suggested is the development of a kill step to help reduce the likelihood of a foodborne illness outbreak. Scientists at USDA's Agricultural Research Service are currently working on a way to increase the safety of leafy greens that involves the combination of a new sanitizer with ultrasound. There also is talk of using irradiation to keep the pathogens at bay.

The bottom line is new technology needs to be developed that will further reduce the likelihood of these types of foodborne illness outbreaks from occurring. What we all have to remember, however, is that we do not live in a perfect world.