Don't eat your spinach!

[Miulang]

The FDA announced today that fresh prepackaged spinach is the apparent cause of an e.coli outbreak that has killed one person and seriously sickened 50 others in 8 states.

{QUOTE]An outbreak of E. coli in eight states has left at least one person dead and 50 others sick, federal health officials said Thursday in warning consumers nationwide not to eat bagged fresh spinach.

The death occurred in Wisconsin, where 20 others were also sickened, said Dr. David Acheson of the Food and Drug Administration's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. The outbreak has sickened others -- eight of them seriously -- in Connecticut, Idaho, Indiana, Michigan, New Mexico, Oregon and Utah.

FDA officials do not know the source of the outbreak other than it appears to be linked to bagged spinach. "We're advising people not to eat it," Acheson said.

The outbreak has affected a mix of ages, but most of the cases have involved women, Acheson told reporters in a conference call. He had no further information on the person who died.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Wisconsin health officials alerted the FDA about the outbreak Wednesday. Preliminary analysis suggests the same bug is responsible for the outbreak in all eight states.

The warning applied to consumers nationwide because of uncertainty over the origin of the tainted spinach and how widely it was distributed.[/QUOTE]

Miulang

[achow]

Re: Don't eat your spinach!

Thanks for the notification! I love to eat spinach but after seeing this I probably will stop eating it. Did the report said where the bagged spinach was sold at? I usually buy my bagged spinach at Costco here in Honolulu.

[Got2HaVKaYaNoW]

Re: Don't eat your spinach!

[FONT=Comic Sans MS]Whoa..Thankx for the MEMO...I just bought a package of frozen spinach to make Spinach & pork stew....aww shux....& I really was hungry for that..... how bout spasgetti..[/FONT]

[Hellbent]

Re: Don't eat your spinach!

frozen spinach cooked should be okay?

[Miulang]

Re: Don't eat your spinach!

frozen spinach cooked should be okay?

Yes. frozen spinach should be OK, especially if you're cooking it. It's the fresh stuff that's in bags (like from Dole) that are all suspect. The FDA can't pinpoint lot numbers or vendors, so it's best to just stick to frozen or fresh spinach that's NOT prebagged (the stuff that comes in bunches with roots and stems).

Miulang

[Got2HaVKaYaNoW]

Re: Don't eat your spinach!

Yes. frozen spinach should be OK, especially if you're cooking it. It's the fresh stuff that's in bags (like from Dole) that are all suspect. The FDA can't pinpoint lot numbers or vendors, so it's best to just stick to frozen or fresh spinach that's NOT prebagged (the stuff that comes in bunches with roots and stems).

Miulang

Yeaaay, perfrect I can have my spinach pork, mahalo Miulang!!!

[SouthKona]

Re: Don't eat your spinach!

This brings to mind the recommendation that people always wash their lettuce and vegies prior to eating them, even "prewashed, prepackage" lettuce and spinach.

[adrian]

Re: Don't eat your spinach!

I can hear popeye crying...

[helen]

Re: Don't eat your spinach!

Not really, Popeye tend to use canned spinach. Maybe one cartoon adventure he might have used unpick spinach for that extra strength boost to beat up Bluto (or Brutus).

[Pomai]

Re: Don't eat your spinach!

This brings to mind the recommendation that people always wash their lettuce and vegies prior to eating them, even "prewashed, prepackage" lettuce and spinach.

Definately.

Still, in today's report, washing has been determined ineffective in this case:

"If you wash it, it is not going to get rid of it," said Robert Brackett, director of the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Nutrition. The FDA warned people not to eat bagged spinach and said washing it wouldn't solve the problem because the bacteria is too tightly attached."

I usually don't add fresh (raw) spinach to salads. In fact, the only dish I can remember preparing with it was stuffed Manicotti (a large tube-shaped pasta), which is stuffed with spinach (cooked down first), then combined with Ricotta, Parm' and Mozzarella cheeses, Italian Sausage, basil and thyme. Ono!

I can hear Popeye now.. "Ug Ug Ug ugug gug ug u u g g g ug u g # % @ # _ _ _ "

[Miulang]

Re: Don't eat your spinach!

For anybody who cares, the bad spinach was tracked down to a California distributor called Natural Selection Foods. It sells bagged spinach under the following labels:

Bellissima


Cheney Brothers


Coastline


Compliments


Cross Valley


D'Arrigo Brothers


Dole


Earthbound Farm


Emeril


Fresh Point


Green Harvest


Jansal Valley


Mann


Mills Family Farm


Natural Selection Foods


Nature's Basket


O Organic


Premium Fresh


President's Choice


Pride of San Juan


Pro-Mark


Rave Spinach


Ready Pac


River Ranch


Riverside Farms


Snoboy


Superior


Sysco


Tanimura & Antle


The Farmer's Market


Trader Joe's

Sysco for one is a vendor who sells to restaurants all across the country, so if you're planning to dine out over the next few days, make sure you don't have fresh spinach on your plate!

Miulang

[Hellbent]

Re: Don't eat your spinach!

i was at pizza hut tonight and they didnt have any spinach =p

[WindwardOahuRN]

Re: Don't eat your spinach!

For anybody who cares, the bad spinach was tracked down to a California distributor called Natural Selection Foods. It sells bagged spinach under the following labels:

Bellissima


Cheney Brothers


Coastline


Compliments


Cross Valley


D'Arrigo Brothers


Dole


Earthbound Farm


Emeril


Fresh Point


Green Harvest


Jansal Valley


Mann


Mills Family Farm


Natural Selection Foods


Nature's Basket


O Organic


Premium Fresh


President's Choice


Pride of San Juan


Pro-Mark


Rave Spinach


Ready Pac


River Ranch


Riverside Farms


Snoboy


Superior


Sysco


Tanimura & Antle


The Farmer's Market


Trader Joe's

Sysco for one is a vendor who sells to restaurants all across the country, so if you're planning to dine out over the next few days, make sure you don't have fresh spinach on your plate!

Miulang

IIRC, "Earthbound Farm" is the brand carried by Down to Earth.

I love that stuff. :::Sniff::::

I am wondering if I have developed an immunity to E Coli infections, after all the years of inhaling. (It's a nurse thing...)

I know...TMI, TMI.

[Pomai]

Re: Don't eat your spinach!

I am wondering if I have developed an immunity to E Coli infections, after all the years of inhaling. (It's a nurse thing...)

I know what you mean. The hospital environment (especially the patients' rooms) is a breeding ground of germ contamination. The waterless soap and handwashing in general are good practice to keep.

Perhaps the next heath craze will be the "immune system maintenance diet", a.k.a. the "IS Maintain diet".

Goji Juice.

[Leo Lakio]

Re: Don't eat your spinach!

washing has been determined ineffective in this case:
"If you wash it, it is not going to get rid of it," said Robert Brackett, director of the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Nutrition. The FDA warned people not to eat bagged spinach and said washing it wouldn't solve the problem because the bacteria is too tightly attached."

The reports I've seen say that it is likely the e. coli was from improperly processed cow manure which got into the irrigation water, so the bacteria was drawn up into the plants' cell structures - thus, no amount of washing can get to it.

so if you're planning to dine out over the next few days, make sure you don't have fresh spinach on your plate!

Along with stores, most restaurants have pulled spinach from their dishes as well, usually substituting kale in cooked dishes, and arugula in raw ones.