How do you feel about the peanut recall?

[kristen.c]

I understand that food safety issues happen, and sometimes these issues can be very hard to avoid. However, this has me absolutely STEAMED.

I just read an article that they regularly test batches, and previous batches have tested positive for Salmonella yet the product wasn't pulled and no one was notified! I think the company should be held criminally responsible for the deaths of these people who died from eating their products. Accidents are one thing, but being negligent and not pulling products that you know are tainted that result in people dying? And this has been happening since 2007? That's putting money above human life...

What are your thoughts on the subject?

Some light reading: The Associated Press: Lab confirmed salmonella for Ga. peanut plant

[derketchup]

100% disgusting.

[OHeather]

A lot of businesses put bottom dollar over a person's well-being. While I'm not saying it is right, I do think that we as a society need to look at the big picture too. Who is paying for all the things we buy and throw out b/c they don't work, aren't worth the money we paid, break in 2 seconds, can't live without while @ the store, etc., etc., etc.? It's not only the person whose actual money to purchase the product is being used. Think about from where the products are coming and who is making them and what these people have to go through to give us these cheap things. And all they are are things. I saw a 60 minutes show (maybe 20/20 or one of those nightly news stories) awhile back, which reported on a "family" whose mom lived in one "apartment" and the father lived in another one. The area that these people had as there own were a bed with a sheet draped in front of it, like a curtain for privacy, and a shelf to hold toiletries. The man and woman lived in two separate buildings and in a room with many other people of the same gender. The children of this couple lived with grandparents hours and hours away, not seeing their parents for months at a time (and probably not both of them together at the same time). I don't remember the actual amount of $$ that the couple made per day, but it was measly. I think of the well-being of this family and what they give up so that (they can earn a living for their children) someone else can get a cheap t.v. or pair of shoes. They thought they had it pretty good--not the best circumstances, but pretty good.

To bring this back to the whole PB recall issue and big business. The lives of people are torn apart not just by food production and the occurrences of salmonella in some products but also by the production of many non-food products. Some are just more noticeable to us in the USA. When it hits home, I think people take more of a stand, like a "not in my backyard, you don't." After reading multiple articles about this particular recall, past recalls, and salmonella in general, I feel that it is not necessarily the best option to just throw out food products that would be viable and nutritious in the future. I don't know how feasible it would be to hold onto contaminated products until they were viable, but if the PB would be safe in a year to consume why not use it then?

Here are a couple little diddies: (from wcco.com - Good Question: How Does Salmonella Get Into P.B.?)

Salmonella can live in your system and in a peanut butter product for as long as a year.

Labuza said if you're worried about the peanut butter in your home, you can let it sit for six months to a year, and if it is contaminated, the bacteria will die off.

He also said the best thing to do to protect yourself against food contamination is keeping your immune systems strong by taking care of yourself. Also, eat yogurt and go to the hospital if you get violently ill. That will help doctors track the problem and keep it from spreading.

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