Salad Days

I’ve never met a salad with strawberries I didn’t like. The juxtaposition of crunchy greens and sweet fruit is YUM! Here’s a quick dressing you can throw together next time you’re thinking of adding berries to your salad. It’s just a little bit sweet and a little bit creamy, which brings out the flavor of the fruit. It’s also nice as a dip for carrot sticks.

Cashew Cream Dressing

1/3 cup soy milk (or regular milk, if you insist)
1/4 cup applesauce
1/4 cup cashews
2 tablespoons currants or raisins

Blend all of the ingredients in a high-powered blender until smooth and creamy.

I lived through the Jack In the Box E. coli outbreak when I was younger and have lived through many recalls of E. coli infected foods since then. This week’s spinach recall really hit a nerve though and got me wondering just exactly how this bug gets onto our produce. Here’s my attempt at distilling what I learned.

What is E. coli?

It is a bacterium commonly found in the intestines of man and animals. We depend on this bacteria to break down cellulose and assist us in the absorption of vitamin K, the blood-clotting vitamin. Truly, you have billions of “friends” that you never knew you had.

E.coli O157:H7 is a mutant form which lives in the intestines of some cattle, sheep and goats but is not naturally found in the intestines of man. It produces toxins which can be potentially fatal when the bacteria is ingested in very small amounts. As as few as 10 E.coli O157:H7 organisms can cause a person to develop symptoms. (Contrast this with salmonella, which requires concentrations of up to 1 million organisms before symptoms will present.)

If the mutant, toxic form lives in animals, how the heck does it get onto our produce?!

Admittedly, the supply chain from field to supermarket is a long one, with many potential points along the way for contamination to occur. Because the pathogen is found primarily in cattle and wildlife feces, however, epidemiological experts tend to start with three possibilities: dust and mud contamination, wildlife intrusions, and irrigation water. 

Dust & Mud

Cattle feedlots naturally have a high concentration of cattle manure. The muddy, fecal manure mix is a very happy place for E. coli bacteria to thrive. If the location of the feedlot also happens to be dry and windy, mud turned to dust can carry the E. coli to neighboring farms.

Wildlife Intrusions

If cattle feedlots are producing muddy E. coli soups, then its possible for migratory birds to pick it up and deposit it on neighboring farms. Similarly, feral swine and other wildlife could excrete or carry the E. coli.

Irrigation water

Finally, dust, mud, or wildlife can contaminate irrigation water headed for a leafy field. Shockingly, there are no protections against this either. FDA provides no specifics, critical limits, or metrics based on indicators or pathogen prevalence in a standardized sample volume of any size. Producers are held to self-determination of the broadly applicable position that water should be “of appropriate quality for its intended source, or treating and testing water on a regular basis and as needed to ensure appropriate quality.” Whatever that means…

Should I stop eating salad?

According to the CDC, most illness from E. coli O157:H7 has been associated with undercooked, contaminated ground beef. So the short answer is no!

It is always important to be careful when handling any food, however. If you insist on preparing meat in your home: Always clean any surface that has come in contact with raw meat before any other item is placed on that surface. Always thoroughly wash hands after handling raw meat and before handling any other utensil or food item. Prepare meat and poultry separately from fruits and vegetables, and use separate clean utensils for cutting and mixing.

In addition, the Produce Marketing Association recommends the following:

At the store: trust your senses. Look for fresh-looking fruits and vegetables that are not bruised, shriveled, moldy, or slimy. Don’t buy anything that smells bad. Don’t buy packaged vegetables that look slimy. Buy only what you need. Keep meats separate from produce.

At home: Handle fresh fruits and vegetables carefully. Put produce away promptly, and keep it in the crisper. Remember to keep all cut fruits and vegetables covered in the refrigerator, and throw away produce you have kept too long. Wash all fruits and vegetables in clean drinking water before eating. Do not use detergent or bleach when washing fruits and vegetables. Store prepared fruit salads and other cut produce in the refrigerator until just before serving. 

More than 700 cases of baby spinach in California, Arizona and Washington have been recalled this week because of possible E. coli contamination. Check your fridge for bags of Ready Pac bagged salads with Useby Dates of July 4 with Product Code 11707B, IR127121 and July 8 with Product Code 12007B, IR130373. If you find a recalled bag, you should throw it away and contact a Ready Pac Consumer Affairs representative to obtain a full refund. (Toll-free at (800) 800-7822, Monday - Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. PDT).