The queasy stomach, vomiting and diarrhea that are the hallmarks of food poisoning may not come from the food Philadelphians eat; it could come from the spices added to food during preparation or serving. The Food and Drug Administration traced a recent nationwide outbreak of salmonella poisoning to black and red pepper. Salmonella bacteria live in the intestinal tracts of animals, birds and humans and can be spread by rodent or bird droppings. While most infects humans suffer intestinal upset and recover, salmonella can be life-threatening for infants, small children, the elderly and the chronically ill. The contaminated spices sparked a recall of the spices themselves and the foods they had been added to, including nationally sold salami products.
The pepper recall is the sixteenth spice recall ordered by the FDA since 2001. Recalled bacteria-infected spices have all been popular and commonly used spices ranging from sage to basil, increasing the threat that people living in Philadelphia and across the country could be sickened during normal meal preparation. Food poisoning can cause serious personal injury illness, life-threatening dehydration and possibly death. The growing health threat posed by contaminated spices has caused the FDA to launch an investigation of the spice industry.
A culinary staple in every home kitchen and Philadelphia restaurant, defective product spices can be contaminated during the harvesting, transport, production or storage processes by rodent urine and feces, foraging ants, bird droppings and unsanitary production procedures. The FDA is working with the spice industry to standardize procedures for eliminating bacteria from spices. The industry currently uses three different methods to eliminate bacteria from spices: steam heat, irradiation or fumigation with the pesticide ethylene oxide. Bills to insure the safety of spices shipped to Philadelphia stores are currently pending in Congress that would standardize the way raw spices are treated and require spice importers to verify the safety of imported spices.
