I just came across what is probably one of the most useful websites I’ve ever seen for those of you who are worried about food poisoning, salmonella, and e coli. The Food Poison Journal  contains all the latest information about which food products have been recalled due to health and safety issues.


Just two days ago, Tim’s Cascade Chips were re-called after it was discovered that they had been made with HVP (hydrolyzed vegetable protein), which can cause salmonella. If that’s not bad enough, the Randolph Packing Co. Inc., recalled as much as 96,000 pounds of beef products yesterday. Unfortunately, these are not isolated instances- there is a lot of unsafe food out there.

Today, I got a phone call that my sister-in-law was in the emergency room due to vomiting and diarrhea- they are still doing tests to see what the problem is and she seems to be doing better, but when you read this blog, you start to feel absolutely terrified about much of the food that is being distributed throughout the country.

While a lot of the films about food safety and the Michael Pollan books seem sensationalist at times, it’s because they have good reason- the behemouth food industry giants are distributing unsafe food to the American public

Interestingly enough, the Senate is being urged right now to pass a food safety bill that cleared the house in July. The house bill would allow the FDA to recall food for a variety of pathogens and food safety advocates are strongly urging the senate to get going on their own version of the bill.

According to the statistics cited in the Wall Street Journal, food-borne illnesses cost roughly $158 billion dollars annually in the United States alone. If you discount the dollar signs, the human cost is even higher with  325,000 hospitalizations and 5,000 deaths a year estimated to be related to food-born illnesses.

Part of the problem is that the United States does not have stringent enough guidelines on imports of fish and produce, which is why some of the cases are linked to imports from Mexico, but another factor is that the industry isn't regulated enough.

If you are totally scared by the statistics, it’s a good idea to check out the FDA’s online resources about food-borne illnesses, as well as a regular check-in to the Food Poison Journal.