Nothing Better Than a Homegrown Tomato

Updated Below

20 pounds of heirloom tomatoes were waiting for me on my porch the morning after the Food and Drug Administration issued a warning to avoid certain types of tomatoes due to an outbreak of the Saintpaul strain of Salmonella. My neighbor who dropped off the big beefy vegetables called later to say the tomatoes she left for me were overripe, too soft to sell. She had not given me any of the Romas suspected of carrying bacteria that she had to pull from the shelf at her work, she wasn’t trying to poison me.

As of yesterday there have been 167 confirmed cases of food related illness from suspect tomatoes resulting in 23 hospitalizations and fortunately no fatalities. On Monday, McDonald's and Wal-Mart temporarily stopped offering tomatoes to their customers as a precautionary measure. This is bad - not only because this is about as mainstream as opinion gets rather because of their purchasing power. McDonald's places a tomato on almost every burger and whether you think Wal-Mart is responsible for poorly tailored clothes, the rise of Bill Clinton and/or the dearth of middle class, they are the largest retailer in the US.

Because of the scale of the outbreak - cases reported 17 states; it is assumed tomatoes distributed nationally are responsible. Tomatoes are a big crop; the Department of Agriculture estimates sales at 1.28 billion dollars in 2007. California and Florida are the largest producers. The FDA cleared tomatoes from California for sale but grocery stores have rejected shipments possibly out of fear of the salmonella contamination or worry of not being able to convince their customers the product they are carrying is safe. Florida, the second largest agricultural state in the US, is second to no one in tomatoes, annually selling $500-700 million worth of tomatoes. At this time of year, Florida produces 90% of the tomato crop and growers in the state are currently being scrutinized as officials search for ground zero with this contamination.

According to an official speaking to Reuters News, the tomato industry in Florida stands to lose up to $40 million dollars, as tomatoes sit on the vine waiting for the clearance from the FDA to resume picking and shipping. While it is always wise never to trust industry numbers (Is that wholesale or retail value? Will all the $40 million be a complete loss or can some of that revenue be recouped through insurance, selling tomatoes at less than premium price for canning or dealing ripe tomatoes to producers of products like salsa and spaghetti sauce), this is still an astounding loss.

Last year it was the unfortunate collision of e-coli and spinach, now tomatoes and salmonella. Growers, particularly in those in Florida stand to loose serious short-term money and long term, the trust of consumers. As a general rule large agricultural interests oppose nominal reforms and regulations even when there is a benefit in helping restore public trust and safety.

Any changes that need to be made in food safety are not going to trickle down from large scale growers and retailers, instead they will have come ground up from consumers. Customers need to ask themselves if that limp tasteless tomato on their burger in February is really all that. Buyers are going to have to choose local products - national distribution can really confound a local problem. Shoppers are going to have to eat seasonally and as hokey as this word sounds, citizens are going to have to make the health and safety of the food they eat a priority with their representatives.

Update: Seoul Kitchen
Speaking of being politically active about food safety concerns, the South Koreans gave a lesson in how it is done: Street protests in Seoul, letters of resignation from cabinet members, the newly formed parliamentary government on the verge of collapse, phone calls of reassurance from President Bush.

This current uprising stems from a treaty negotiated by the newly elected, pro-US government of Lee Myung-bak to begin (re)importing beef over 30 months of age. Animals at this age are suspected to be more vulnerable to infections from mad-cow disease. Historically South Korea has been the 3rd largest market for US, but stopped imports amid safety concerns in 2003.

It is hard to imagine an analogous protest here in the US. The Seoul protest numbered between 40,000 and 100,000; if 1/10th of that many people took to the streets to protest US beef safety, the 24 hour news networks would show helicopter shots describing what the crowd is doing – riot watch, rather than addressing and reporting on the protester’s concerns. The ensuing studio debate about food safety would consist of a spokesperson from the US Beef Council saying mad cow disease is aberration of a historically safe, wholesome and American food - while a member of PETA would be shouting over him we shouldn’t be eating beef anyway.

Even though I don’t share the same concerns of beef safety, I’m liking the Korean method of direct democracy - rumor has it there is even a French delegation studying this food protest.
Stumble It!