Orlando, Fla. (PRWEB) June 02, 2011
An outbreak of a dangerous strain of Escherichia coli bacteria in Germany has already killed 15 people and made 1,000 more ill. Early evidence by German researchers linked the outbreak to cucumbers imported from farms in Spain.
?Every expert says there is no immediate risk to the U.S. food supply, which is great news. But consumers wanting to remain aware of any new developments can take some additional steps to ease their fears,? said Angela Paymard, Chairwoman of N2N Global. N2N Global, based in Orlando, Fla. provides operations, compliance, and food safety solutions for food companies which helps ensure the world?s food supply operates more effectively and efficiently. Better and more efficient operations translates to a higher quality of food in the supply chain. Paymard works with food supply chain companies like restaurants, retailers, and distributors all the way through growers, packers, and processors around the world.
?Consumers need to adopt better food safety habits as a rule,? Paymard said. ?It?s an opportunity for consumers to become educated in best practices for food safety.?
According to the US Food and Drug Administration, U.S. food consumers are increasingly demanding greater variety, quality, and convenience in the food they consume. As Americans become more ethnically diverse, the American food basket reflects a growing share of tropical products, spices, and imported gourmet products.
Americans have also become much more health conscious, with consumers demanding more nutritious foods. Dietary concerns have changed the emphasis from red meat to fish, fostered growing interest in fresh fruits, vegetables, and unsaturated fats, such as olive oil and canola oil, and sparked new interest in green teas, which contain antioxidants. In addition, cocoa (and dark chocolate) contains high levels of antioxidants and flavonoids, which are linked to improved cardiovascular health. Green tea and cocoa butter are also used in beauty products.
But, a growing share of U.S. imports can be attributed to intra-industry trade, where agricultural-processing industries based in one country carry out certain processing steps offshore and import products at different levels of processing from their subsidiaries in foreign markets.
Food manufacturing operations are often spread over many national boundaries to minimize production and distribution costs as well as to enhance the ability to quickly replenish inventories, the USDA concluded.
Whether the food is coming from Europe or other parts of the world, consumers should keep in mind that if food is processed and packaged, the food should be safe as long as the seal is not broken. For fresh foods, the risk of contamination is higher.
While experts say there is no immediate threat to the U.S. consumer, and since the attacks on September 11, 2001, the USDA?s commitment to protect America?s supply of meat, poultry, and egg products from any form of intentional or unintentional contamination has never been higher, consumers can do the following:
1. Check the Country of Origin Labeling on your fresh food. As part of the overall 2008 Farm Bill legislation, retailers must provide country of origin information at point of sale for perishable agricultural commodities. This paved the way for companies to label their packages with the city and state from which the product came. If from outside the U.S., labeling includes the country from which it came. Consumers can decide whether they want to consume product from any particular geography.
2. Visit http://www.foodsafety.gov The FDA?s job is to protect the public food supply. They monitor food domestically and have offices internationally in some countries. The FDA has a great website, foodsafety.gov. Consumers can log on to the website and receive the latest information about radiation safety and the status of any contamination from Japan as seen by the people protecting and examining imports at our borders. Consumers can also log onto N2N Global?s Twitter page for up to date information under http://www.twitter.com/n2nglobal.
Paymard says food safety risks can easily be avoided at home when consumers adhere to good food safety practices every day. Here are some of Angela?s tips:
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