How Safe is Your Food?

I believe that the safety of food is as safe as its ever been. Is there room for improvement?, I'm sure there is.

With pasteurization techniques that are improving all the time to eliminate pathogens. such as HTST (High Temperature, Short Time, UHT (Ultra Hight Temperature), Flash pasteurization and a few years ago Flow Technologies along with a large Orange Juice processor created a form of pasteurization that uses High Pressure Pasteurization (HPP) for pasteurizing Orange Juice. This can be used ion other food stuffs.

One thing about pastuerization is that it also does break down the good parts of the product that are good for you.

But do have an opinion on this which I tried not to influence the truth, because this is my opinion...so with that being said, one thing about food safety,

Some side effects to this, and that is I believe there should be a certain amount of bacteria that we should consume, just for the sake of strengthening and exercising our immune system

p911

Another thing to worry about that is food related are those that are genetically modified and enhanced produced as well as feeds used for animals that we consume! All of which are profitability oriented, geared or driven

One cannot rely on the Government to insure food safety- there are not enough inspectors (or money to hire more inspectors) to properly inspect and monitor continuously all the various food production facilities required to feed 350,000,000 people. Furthermore, once the product leaves the processor, there is no way of knowing who has handled it, or how it has been stored/treated. Most suppliers (including restaurants) have a vested interest in doing everything they can to insure that they don't make anyone sick. But the system is just too complicated to guarantee that all possible sources of contamination can be controlled.

Things like Salmonella and E. coli are best controlled by cooking food thoroughly, and by insuring that utensils and dishes that have come in to contact with the raw foods do not come in to contact with other foods. I am more concerned, actually, with the fresh vegetables and fruits that I buy- mostly because I consume a lot of them raw. Liberal use of water is the best solution here- and don't cut them up with the same knife you used to trim the fat off that nice steak!

When is Monsanto going to just create new hybrid foods that are impervious to bacteria and germs? Seems like something they're probly already working on.

impervious to bacteria and germs?

How would we digest it?

This is a must watch for anyone concerned about your food:

http://www.pbs.org/pov/foodinc/index.php

I watched Food, Inc. and have changed my eating and food shopping habits. Costs more, but is well worth it.

There is a good link on Foods:

Ask George Your Question <http://whfoods.org/sendask.php>

http://whfoods.org/

I always start from the standpoint of doubting the cleanliness and quality of food. I inspect the food carefully before buying it, and again before cooking. When freshness or quality is in doubt, I chuck it out. I am meticulous about cleaning and preparing food, cutting away anything less than perfect. I always cook meat thoroughly, and generally follow the recommended cooking times to destroy pathogens. Also use strict sanitation practices for surfaces or utensils in contact with raw meat or fish. Now that large scale contamination is often in the news, I also keep an eye out for recalls and alerts to avoid it if possible.

Many of the traditional cooking herbs and spices have antimicrobial activity against pathogens. That goes for the European suite (bay, oregano, thyme, rosemary, garlic etc) as well as spicy Chinese and Indian cuisine. I love to cook, and I take pleasure in knowing that my favourite tastes are also good for my health and for the cleanly quality of my food. Fresh lemons are always in use in my kitchen, and I use the rinds to clean the dishes and pots and the sink, especially if seafood is involved.

Because of my food habits, I have pretty well managed to avoid any kind of foodborne illness or food poisoning.