Posted: May 31st, 2012 - 12:52pm
Source: The Packer

It wasn’t a good week for food safety for fresh produce.
Or was it?
While news of a handful of recalls generated buzz in the produce industry before Memorial Day, it was notable that they all lacked much outrage in the media or among consumers.
That’s probably because no illnesses were reported in any of the recalls.
This may be the beginning of the maturity of food safety.
Product was routinely tested, and when it was found to be tainted with a pathogen, it was pulled from the market. The recalls were conducted in an orderly and professional manner, while retail and foodservice customers, consumers and media were notified by government agencies and the companies involved.
These companies should be able to continue to produce and ship those labels after the food safety issues are addressed.
It’s as if everyone involved acknowledges that outbreaks will occur, and the important thing is getting product out of the market as soon as possible so the least number of people get sick.