Food Safety
The topic of food safety is an environmental issue which has been important to me ever
since I got food poisoning from public drinking water here in Rochester, New Hampshire. Because
of this, I try to pay close attention to what I put into my own body and into my family’s as well.
There are many different subjects on food safety that we could look at, but this will be a focus on
the fact that the public relies on the media rather than the facts when it comes to learning about the
food that we are buying in our grocery stores.
First let’s try to understand the significance of this subject and how it can have a dramatic
effect on our society, and on a micro level as well. Without turning this into a political
debate, let’s just agree that the United States is having issues with major health problems that are
proven to be directly linked to diet, such as diabetes and obesity. The fact that these two health
issues alone are something that diet can be the cause or cure, is proof enough that there
is a direct link. When we take things like this into consideration and then tie this into the topic of
universal healthcare, we can see that this is a topic of truly great importance.
Now that we can see that this is truly an important topic that affects all of us. Let’s look at
the way things are taking place. When you hear the phrase “food safety” what do you think of?
E-coli, food-borne illness, or just a bad day with the cold sweats and other not so fun symptoms?
Or do you think of genetically modified crops? I think this mostly depends on how much you
research the food you purchase and where you do your shopping. Because there are so many subtopics, I think the idea of safe food becomes a matter of opinion just the same as many of the
other serious environmental issues we encounter daily. The question of something
being safe could mean, is this going to make me sick today? Or is this going to cause health
problems later? It could also mean something like. What was used to produce this? Is it
organic or is it factory produced? These are all questions that we may choose to ask or choose to
avoid. Unfortunately, I think that too many people in the United States choose to avoid these
questions because it is much easier to live our lives by thinking we are doing better by saving
money and buying cheap food that makes our lives more efficient. The question then becomes.
What do we gain by being able to purchase cheap food from big-box stores which allow us to
make a meal in 20 minutes to feed a family of four? Is our life improving because we can
do this? Or is it healthier to eat a frozen lunch that says “natural” or “lean” on it than to eat a
peanut butter sandwich that has a bit more fat in it than the “lean” lunch? Again, this all comes
down to our own opinions and lifestyle choices.
Moving on, let’s look at the impact the media has had on this subject. CNN wrote an
article stating, “Beef Products Inc. announced Thursday that the company has filed a $1.2 billion
lawsuit against ABC News, three reporters (Diane Sawyer, Jim Avila, and David Kerley) and
others, claiming damages because of their reports on BPI's lean finely textured beef product
(LFTB) more colloquially known as "pink slime." Dan Webb, the company's lawyer, wrote in a
public statement, "Through nearly 200 false, misleading and defamatory statements, repeated
continuously during a month-long disinformation campaign, ABC and other individuals
knowingly misled consumers into believing that LFTB was not beef and not safe for public
consumption, which is completely false." Webb stated today in a phone call with reporters that,
"The evidence is overwhelming that our product is 100% beef." BPI makes the product by
grinding together beef scraps and connective tissue. The company then uses a mixture of
ammonia and water (ammonium hydroxide) to prevent the risk for E. coli or salmonella
contamination.” Now just because the company has stated that the FDA claims the product to be
100% beef and good for human consumption, would you consider this to be safe? Do we really
know what long term effects this will have on us? Do we really want to consume something that
has to be “sterilized” on such a dramatic level? Another article titled Genetically Modified Foods
Have Numerous Benefits and No Known Risks, states facts about technophobia, “The Japanese
brewer Kirin and the Danish brewer Carlsberg eliminated genetically engineered ingredients
from their beers. In the United States, the fast-food giant McDonald's banned them from its
menu; food manufacturers Heinz and Gerber (then a division of Switzerland-based Novartis)
dropped them from their baby-food lines; and Frito-Lay demanded that its growers stop planting
corn engineered to contain a bacterial protein that confers resistance to insect predation. These
measures were rationalized in various ways, but the reality is that by yielding to the demands of a
minuscule number of disingenuous activists, the companies opted to offer fewer safe products to
consumers, thereby exposing themselves to legal jeopardy.” If we look at what is being said here,
it is as if we are being scared into thinking that if we do not allow for the continued development
of GMOs than we will just end up sick. When is the last time you heard of a big outbreak at your
local farmers market? Now I am not saying that you can’t get sick from eating locally farmed
food, I just think that if you know where you got your food and then treat it properly before
consuming it, you will be more confident in knowing exactly what you are putting into your
body.
This brings up my final question. If you get something at the supermarket, take it out of
its package and make dinner with it, how do you know what was in the package? Can you trust
the label? Are trace ingredients required to be placed on the label? The FDA states, “Answer: It
depends on whether the trace ingredient is present in a significant amount and has a function in
the finished food. If a substance is an incidental additive and has no function or technical effect
in the finished product, then it need not be declared on the label. An incidental additive is usually
present because it is an ingredient of another ingredient. Sulfites are incidental 4
only if present at less than 10 ppm. Now with that little bit of information, would you be okay with
eating food that may contain trace amounts of arsenic that fall just within the limit of 10ppm?
With all this information to consider, I think it is hard to state who is right or
wrong when it comes to food safety because it ultimately comes down to personal choice.
Unfortunately, I think that most of the public is misguided into thinking that the labels are
always looking out for our best interests. I also feel like the FDA has a way of stating things that
can leave quite a bit of grey area when it comes to telling us exactly what is in our packaged food
products, thus leaving themselves not responsible for any misinformation. Although the FDA is a
great tool for gathering some general information and rules, they are not always involved in areas
that matter. Just look at the use of energy drinks and herbal supplements which are not regulated
by the FDA. It is because of this that I feel what we really need to do is change the way we look
at our everyday diets and ultimately, hold ourselves responsible for our own choices.
I think it is hard to say what should be done to fix this problem because there are
so many ways to approach this. One solution could be to put together another type of agency or
expand the FDA into a more helpful organization that instead of focusing on keeping big
business going, they could work on the education of the public and provide more easily
understood guidelines to help people make smarter choices. Unfortunately, I think that there is
probably too much to lose for big companies if we were to go in that direction. That is why I
think it is important for us to talk about it with our kids and explain to them the importance of
eating healthy. When I say eating healthy, I don’t just mean eating a certain “low fat” diet or
something along those lines. I am talking about eating more whole foods and raw foods.
Speaking from my own personal experience, I know I feel better and perform better in all aspects
of my life when I am eating a diet like that. It is when I eat all sorts of pre-made or factory
produced foods that I begin to feel bogged down and have less energy. This is because our bodies
are working harder to break down and digest these types of foods. They need to process them
differently and sometimes they don’t break them down properly. This can cause all sorts of
problems in our lives. We can feel tired all the time, and not want to get things done. We can be
sick more often and we can run into other health issues like diabetes or food allergies.
So, with all of that to consider, I think education is the best direction but of course not the
only solution. Again, it all comes down to a matter of personal choice and sometimes I think the
media might be our own worst enemy. Even though they may have good intentions most of the
time, what types of adds do we see when we watch the news? Usually, they are pharmaceutical
ads. And if you think about it, keeping people sick is what will keep those big companies in
business. So, I choose to eat more local whole foods and be a part of the solution rather bog
myself down and be part of the problem.