One more sign of the impending collapse
Today's tune, Green Onions, is dedicated to Taco Bell, and its parent corporation, Yum.
There has been yet another outbreak of e coli in the US, and its source has been traced back to a batch of green onions used by the fast food chain. What's next, homogenized milk that really isn't, pasteurization that just doesn't quite reach the temperature/pressure mark that makes it effective?
It's hard to say.
I used to think that the economy was bloated because there were too many hands on every product and service. I still think that is true, but now it is complicated by the appearance of not enough involvement, in this case in the produce industry. It remains to be seen as to why this outbreak occurred, but the last one, involving lettuce, was due in part to inadequate washing of the produce as it was packed. The washing was deemed inadequate because the produce went through a machine whose mechanisms were not fully functional owing to a lack of regular inspections and maintenance. As we move forward in the twenty-first century, it seems that more and more processes are becoming more and more automated. Human intervention, when it actually occurs, is way past the point where a situation has developed.
I am not sure what to say about this, but I believe that it will become more and more common, as costs 'are driven from the business' and more and more faith is placed on technological and automated processes.
I am not sure, but this seems to call for some simplification in our national life. What do you think?
There has been yet another outbreak of e coli in the US, and its source has been traced back to a batch of green onions used by the fast food chain. What's next, homogenized milk that really isn't, pasteurization that just doesn't quite reach the temperature/pressure mark that makes it effective?
It's hard to say.
I used to think that the economy was bloated because there were too many hands on every product and service. I still think that is true, but now it is complicated by the appearance of not enough involvement, in this case in the produce industry. It remains to be seen as to why this outbreak occurred, but the last one, involving lettuce, was due in part to inadequate washing of the produce as it was packed. The washing was deemed inadequate because the produce went through a machine whose mechanisms were not fully functional owing to a lack of regular inspections and maintenance. As we move forward in the twenty-first century, it seems that more and more processes are becoming more and more automated. Human intervention, when it actually occurs, is way past the point where a situation has developed.
I am not sure what to say about this, but I believe that it will become more and more common, as costs 'are driven from the business' and more and more faith is placed on technological and automated processes.
I am not sure, but this seems to call for some simplification in our national life. What do you think?
posted by eccentric recluse at 3:16 PM
5 Comments:
I'm beginning to think that we need to cook everything. I remember in the "old days" when my mom used to warn me about cooking chicken and pork very well - because of salmonella and thrichinosis, respectively.
Spinach and cooked green onions may be okay - but I'm not sure I'll ever get used to a cooked green salad.
Such is life...
I disagree, I think what we need is more localized production centers. i realize that the upper midwest is not condusive to gardening in say, February, but we need suppliers that pick the produce where it is, process it on a smaller and more attentive scale, and are responsive to local markets. I have relatives in the agriculture biz, and they all, to some extent, produce their own food, with very excellent results.
E_R
I agree about keeping foods local. Why do we import foods from Central/South America that we can grow here? I'm also concerned about sanitary growing and picking conditions. Do the pickers have adequate restroom facilities with hot water, soap and towels... And if they did, would a hand-washing rule be enforced? Is sanitation adequate all the way down the line, from preparing the soil to supermarket or restaurant? I'm a little pessimistic about that.
Ah, yes. Locally grown is best. This also reduces the need to import - as Anne says - and reduces fuel/oil consumption in the process along with the other benefits.
I feel very fortunate to have an excellent all-year 'round farmers market here in SF! (But, you are right - with a little planning ahead, one can eat locally all year 'round just about anywhere in the U.S.)
Maybe I won't worry as much about cooking my salads if I shop there(!) (One can get to know the farmer when one shops at a farmers market - and I know many of the farmers welcome interested visitors to their farms, so visitors can see how sanitary the farm is.)
I recommend a book for those interested in local, less commercialized food: Grub (by Anna Lappe - daughter of the famous Francis Moore Lappe of Diet for a Small Planet fame...) Lappe discusses the problems of commercialized farming, and promotes the idea of local - with ideas on how to accomplish this kind of buying (eating)...
thanks for the comment brit, come back anytime
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