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    Back to To the Point

    To the Point

    Are America's Vegetables as Safe as They Should Be?

    The latest count in the E.coli outbreak is one dead and 146 suffering from cramps, diarrhea and kidney trouble. The "smoking gun" is a bag of contaminated spinach found in the refrigerator of a sick patient in New Mexico. It came from somewhere in California's Salinas Valley, where three-quarters of America's spinach and lettuce are grown.…

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    By Warren Olney • May 12, 2014 • 1 min read

    The latest count in the E.coli outbreak is one dead and 146 suffering from cramps, diarrhea and kidney trouble. The "smoking gun" is a bag of contaminated spinach found in the refrigerator of a sick patient in New Mexico. It came from somewhere in California's Salinas Valley, where three-quarters of America's spinach and lettuce are grown. But officials may never know from which farm or how the contamination occurred. They do know that this is the ninth time in 11 years that a dangerous strain of E. coli has been traced to Salinas Valley spinach or lettuce. Who's in charge of protecting consumers from poisoned food? How stringently are standards enforced? Is it time to change the way food is grown and distributed?

    The full episode

    2 of 3
    Are America's Vegetables as Safe as They Should Be?
    1. 1:39UN Says Death Toll in Iraq Much Higher than Previously Reported
    2. 7:21Are America's Vegetables as Safe as They Should Be?You’re reading this
    3. 23:10Diplomacy and Political Theater at the United Nations
    • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

      Warren Olney

      former KCRW broadcaster

    • KCRW placeholder

      Patty Lovera

      Food & Water Watch

    • KCRW placeholder

      Trevor Suslow

      Microbial Food Safety Researcher at UC Davis

    • KCRW placeholder

      David Gombas

      VP of Scientific and Technical Affairs for the United Fresh Produce Association

      NewsNationalPolitics

    The full episode

    2 of 3
    Are America's Vegetables as Safe as They Should Be?
    1. 1:39UN Says Death Toll in Iraq Much Higher than Previously Reported
    2. 7:21Are America's Vegetables as Safe as They Should Be?You’re reading this
    3. 23:10Diplomacy and Political Theater at the United Nations
    Back to To the Point