One Recall After Another After Another

 It seems like everyday some food in the US is being recalled. It started with lettuce with cylospora , Now it's mice in pepperoncini. There's no telling when it will end.There is telling how to shop during this time.Carefully and alertly. That's the best advice for now.

How did we end up here? We've always had recalls, dating back to the early 1900's thanks to the great writer Upton Sinclair who exposed the meat packing industry in his groundbreaking novel The Jungle.  Thanks to him we have federal food safety legislation which seemed to work for over 120 years. However thanks to RFK Jr and the Trump government there haven;t been so many enforced regulations.The FDA here in the States has been under all sorts of cuts.The number of people making inspections have been axed and companies have been allowed to get away with all sorts of shortcuts. That means the consumers are now getting lower quality foods and drinks. It also has reached ingredients like  eggs and flour along with milk. It;s a crap shoot as to what could affect you.It could be cylospora or cylosporiasis derived from the nasty little parasite that causes explosive diarrhea and stomach cramps.People have been hospitalized for a along as seven weeks with it.Salmonella is another problem that's making the rounds too.This rod shaped bacteria has also caused the same stomach tsunami as those parasites. Then there are the findings of everything from a dead mouse in pepperoncini to shards of glass and metal.

What's a home chef to do? Get on X(formerly Twitter) and get the latest updates on what's contaminated and what's recalled. If you don;t trust X then head to FDA Recalls, Market Withdrawals and Safety Alerts. Type in the product you want researched and a whole list of stores will come up with the recalled products.This should help. The best bet is shop smartly. Any frozen food as well as fresh can also be recalled whether from bacteria or some foreign object that got in during the manufacturing process. The problem is you can;t be too judicial or prudent.That hamburger you bought today may be recalled two days from now. That cookie dough you planned on baking this weekend may be reported  with metal shavings or mouse droppings in a week. Maybe the safest bet is picking your own. It is apple picking time so these can be safe if you pick them yourself. Some farms are offering fresh picked Brussels sprouts,kale, winter squash beets,carrots ,broccoli and cauliflower along with Swiss chard.A few farms will let you pick them yourself. If that's the case go for these, and wash them thoroughly in white vinegar and water before doing anything with them. 

As long as we have loose regulations ;we'll keep having recalls . Maybe the best advice is to shop at the farms and be alert to what's being recalled. It is a tough time but home chef's will get through it.