E Coli Contamination - What Can Be Done?
The recent E coli contamination of spinach makes us wary of trusting our food supply. Hundreds have been injured from coast to coast. A major problem is how large agricultural concerns push more food out of the pipeline quicker for a greater profit. Giant farms and industrial-scale processing plants produce mammoth amounts of food that feed this Nation, but are we sacrificing safety for speed and convenience? Whose job is it to make sure that this modern large scale food machine is safe as well as productive? For example,some believe that a likely source of the recent California E coli infection is the growing number of nearby industrial-scale dairy farms that pollute the water supply. How is the water polluted? From the manure produced by cows on these farms that are fed large amounts of grain. Cows normally eat grasses, but this high grain diet makes them grow faster. Unfortunately, it also creates a climate in the gut of a cow's stomach that more readily produces the harmful E coli strain.
We need greater and more effective regulation of our food supply. Also, we need to consider holding accountable those companies that make quick profits by sacrificing food safety.