SHOULD PREGNANT WOMEN EAT PREPARED SALADS?

Every day this blog is read by pregnant women from around the world who want to know what they should eat and not eat. They are right to be concerned. Good nutrition during pregnancy is important for the baby to grow and develop. But there is also the safety side.

Unsafe, contaminated food can cause birth defects, harm the health of the child and even cause stillbirths and miscarriages. You will very rarely find ready-to-eat, packaged salads on a list of "Foods to Avoid While Pregnant". But I am going to put it there Why? Aren't salads a healthy food? They may be, but there are just too many incidents of Listeria monocytogenes bacteria turning up in those beautiful bagged and clam-shell salads.

For instance, at the present time River Ranch Fresh Foods, LLC of Salinas, CA is recalling retail and foodservice bagged salads, because of this bacteria (see previous post). And the recall is spreading. Pacific Coast Fruit of Portland, Oregon bought and used the salads that were recalled by River Ranch in some of their retail (clamshell style) and food service processed bagged salads. Given past experience, I expect more "spinoff" recalls. Pregnant women would be wise to avoid any brand of prepared salads to avoid Listeriosis.

To your good health,
TSF

UPDATE: And - don't forget: it's not just Listeria bacteria that often crop up in prepared salads. At the present time ((11/14/2013) there are ongoing recalls of prepared salads also because of E.coli 0157:H7 and Salmonella bacteria (by different food companies). Pregnant women don't need these bacteria either...

SALSA IS ONE OF THE RISKIEST FOODS TO EAT

Salsa is probably one of the most dangerous dishes you can eat, especially if you eat it in a restaurant. But ready-to-eat salsa bought in a store can be risky too.

The reason: salsa has a high chance of containing bacteria that can make you ill - ones like Salmonella. They can be there in the raw ingredients (such as hot hot peppers, cilantro and tomatoes) to begin with. Of course, there is no cooking step to kill them. In some 30% of cases a major problem is that the salsa is not stored properly, helping small numbers of bacteria to multiply. And in an estimated 20% of cases, the equipment used or food workers are the source of contamination.

That is why the current recall by Club Chef LLC of its Hot Salsa, Mild Salsa and Pico de Gallo products has come as no great surprise. Believe me, this is no small salsa maker. The product was distributed to retailers and foodservice distributors within eleven states in the U.S.: Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia, Arkansas, Mississippi, Missouri, Tennessee, Virginia, North Carolina, Indiana and Illinois.

In stores, these salsa products are sold in 12 oz. (Private Selection brand name) and 16 oz. (Heinen’s brand name) clear plastic packages marked with Use by Date of 3/27/2012 (see photo). And by the way, the use-by date is 12 or 13 days after the shipping date. So much for the "fresh" salsa!

If you are pregnant or have a weakened immune system, you would be wise to pass on ready-to-eat or restaurant salsa.

To your good health,

TSF

BOILED EGG AND SPINOFF RECALLS

I have to admit that I used to be one of those people who believed that a boiled egg would spoil less quickly than a raw egg. Not true. It will actually spoil faster. The reason: once an egg is boiled, the protective coating on the egg is removed and bacteria can enter more quickly.

Then, if the boiled egg is also peeled, it can become contaminated even faster, including during the peeling process itself. In that case, the most likely bacteria to get in is not the usual egg-contaminant Salmonella, but Listeria monocytogenes, the one that is most common in ready-to-eat foods. And, the one that is so dangerous for pregnant women and anyone with a weak immune system.

So the ongoing boiled egg recall in the U.S. in the state of Michigan provides some useful lessons. Michael Foods Egg Products Co. - a large distributor of hard-boiled eggs has found Listeria monocytogenes in some of its products. This recall has a number of spinoffs, because the suspect eggs distributed by this company have been used in making a variety of deli products by its clients.

For instance, in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Spartan Stores has had to recall eight deli products containing these hard-cooked eggs including egg spread, sandwich with egg spread, small and large chef container salads, seven layer and seven layer no-meat container chef salads, and small and large no-meat container chef salads. Sell-by dates are Jan. 20 through Feb. 1. In West Michigan, the recalled products were sold at D&W and Family Fare.

Another Michigan deli - 18th Street Deli Inc., is recalling some 118 pounds of julienne salad products with turkey, ham and hard-boiled eggs. According to local news reports, some salads containing the eggs were also sent to Michigan schools. And I bet there are more recalls to come.

By the way, notice that these "ready-to-eat" egg products have also been used to make pre-packaged sandwiches, which I have been writing about for the last two days...

And of course, this gets back to my mantra about how dangerous ready-to-eat "convenience" foods are...And that doesn't just apply to Michigan, or just to the U.S., but everywhere in the world. This Listeria monocytogenes bacterium is running amok.

Watch out!

To your good health,

TSF