You Are What You Eat?

The old adage rings true - you are what you eat. But these days you may get more than you bargained for when you pick up that fork. Take for example frozen pot pies. Now we know they are high in saturated fats and have mystery ingredients that no one can really identify, but who would have ever thought you could catch salmonella from eating them! That’s right, you read it correctly, we said salmonella! When we at westonlawyers.com first heard about this we were shocked and not just at the disease – but rather at the company’s response to the outbreak.

After several failed attempts to research the origins of the salmonella, ConAgra the parent company for Banquet pot pies summarily gave up the search. Obviously with 15,000 people infected with Salmonella by their product, it may not surprise you that we don't think this was such a good idea! What was ConAgra thinking?

In a recent NewYorkTimes.com article, we were appalled to find that ConAgra is not the only player in this particular game. While they couldn't pinpoint what ingredients were causing the salmonella, it appears that other companies are unaware of even who their suppliers are or of what goes into their products! In the past, the focus has been on contaminated meat, poultry and fish. Now due to global marketplace any food can be contaminated with pathogens are microbes. According to the report, other food companies like Nestlé, and the producers of Swanson hungry Man brands say that they are also unable to ensure the total and complete safety of their products.

Cases like this were brought to the forefront earlier this year when over 27,000 people were sickened as a result of contamination in a peanut production plant in Georgia. While that company issued a massive recall, questions still remain unanswered. Why can't these companies do more research? With current technology, why can't they detect pathogens microbes and other contaminants? And since Congress is taking action on such things as the Chinese drywall debacle, why don't they take action on this? It is apparent that more people have become sick as a result of contaminated food products than have been sickened by the contaminated drywall.

The most disturbing thing in this report was the fact that ConAgra is now issuing instructions to consumers so as to ensure the foods are contaminate free. While we believe in the personal responsibility of consumers, should these companies be held more responsible? Until then be careful what you eat. It could be hazardous to your health.