Tainted Milk E-coli and Plastic Dangers

On almost any given day we read of some threat to our health because of careless handling of food products. The tragic result of this careless disregard for stringent laws to protect the public, especially the very young has been death.

I refer to the recent milk from China that was tainted and cause babies to be ill and 2 of whom died. It seems it was well known that the milk was tainted and yet it was sent to the United States anyway. This is not the first incident of this kind.

Not very long ago there was a question of shrimp being shipped from China to the U.S. I had called the sea food industry hot line to inquire about the news that Arsenic was being used on the shrimp coming in from China. Naturally the sea food industry was a quick defense stating that all shipment of shrimp from China had been stopped and further shipment would be closely guarded.

Still I learned that although fish may e stamped wild caught, it is sent to China where it is packaged. The reason being that sending it to China to be packaged it is far less expensive than doing the packaging here in the US. However there is a big question and inconsistency of just how clean the plants are that package the fish. I also was told there are not enough US inspectors to check each and every thing that is sent to u s. It is important to know where the fish you buy comes from and if it is truly wild caught. Don’t be fooled by statements of Fresh Atlantic because fish farms are located in the Atlantic and the farm raised fish do not have the same value of wild. Further they are not as clean.

That being said the next one to consider is the imported hot peppers, tomatoes and fruit that is grown in Mexico. Recently the chili peppers were found to be a problem and the cause of several people became ill as a result and the restaurant was closed. It was found that the peppers were grown in Mexico on a farm that was watering the produce with raw sewage The workers handled the produce carelessly and the packaging plant did not pass inspection. The products were nevertheless sold and shipped to the US

This debate about plastic containers will go one for a long time. The chemical used to manufacture plastic bottles is raising serious concerns. There is speculation that it may cause anything from reproductive problems to diabetes and cancer to name but a few of the dangers to us. Yet we are put at risk because much of the plastic come from outside of the US.

I feel outrage that we are exposed to dangers to our health and the health of our family’s. We must now not only make out a shopping list to take with u s but we must know where the food item comes from, where it is packaged, was it inspected, and even after all that we still feel uncomfortable if it is wrapped in plastic.

One solution is to return to glass baking dishes, and containers. Do not heat anything in plastic. The heat releases the harmful chemicals. Most of all keep up with news regarding food safety.