In case you haven’t heard the latest in Salmonella-Gate 2008, the FDA is now looking to peppers and cilantro as possible sources for the summer sicknesses previously blamed on tomatoes.
But tomatoes haven’t beaten a bad rap just yet. The reason officials are even looking to Serrano peppers, jalapenos and cilantro is because they’re key ingredients in salsa – something many of the 900+ people who fell ill have reported eating before getting sick. Which means tomatoes haven’t been exonerated yet.
While we still don’t know which food product is to blame for these bacterial outbreaks 
(look out onion and garlic – you could be next), this summer’s stream of salmonella news keeps a spotlight on food-borne illness and the way food is shipped and prepped in this country. And while we need to pressure our regulatory agencies to maintain a reasonable standard of food safety, there’s another key point we should take away from this summer’s crush of contamination: Food-borne illness can be difficult to trace. But it can also be prevented through basic precautions.
So wait until you hear what the FDA discovers in its investigation before getting up-in-arms about the outbreak. And pay more attention to things you can control in your home kitchen – like properly washing produce before eating or cooking it, keeping food prep surfaces clean, cooking food to recommended temperatures and more.
For more guidelines about tomatoes and kitchen prep safety, click here. Technorati Tags: salmonella, FDA, CDC, tomatoes, serrano chili peppers, jalapeno peppers, salsa, food safety, food recall, cilantro, glam.com, glamfit,
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