Article
Food safety requires a strong supply chain
Knowing your supplier can help prevent food-borne illness.
June 23, 2008
More than 550 people in 32 states sickened, and 50-plus hospitalized. More than $100 million in losses to the tomato industry.
The costs of one of the largest salmonella outbreaks linked to tomatoes still are being tallied, just as are the effects on consumer confidence. For the short term, consumers seem to have taken in stride the removal of tomatoes from restaurant menus and store shelves.
"They appreciated the fact we were looking out for their health and safety," said Les Winograd, public relations coordinator for Subway, of customer response to the sandwich shop's pulling the menu item.
Subway, one of the largest users of fresh, red, round tomatoes, voluntarily pulled tomatoes from its menus after the FDA advisedTexas andNew Mexico
Once the FDA cleared a number of states' tomatoes on June 10, Subway "was able to get tomatoes back into stores the next day," Winograd said.
Removing tomatoes from the menu had no noticeable effect on sales, Winograd said, especially since Subway has a variety of sandwich toppings. "Customers really do understand. It wasn't just us. It was everybody."
Fast-food chains across the country pulled tomatoes as a result of the FDA advisory, including Jack in the Box Restaurants and McDonald's.
Kathleen Anthony, spokesperson for San Diego-based Jack in the Box, said the burger chain also voluntarily pulled tomatoes June 4 "as a precautionary measure."
Once the FDA cleared its source of tomatoes on June 6, the chain began re-supplying red-round and grape tomatoes to its stores. Grape tomatoes were not included in the advisory.
Tracing outbreak a complex issue
With the definitive source of the outbreak still to be determined, tomato consumption and demand has decreased. According to the California Tomato Grower's Association, consumer demand for the fruit is off about 60 percent, while demand from restaurants is off about 30 percent.
Some parts ofFlorida
Determining the source of the outbreak — now narrowed to parts ofMexico
Improving traceability is one of the hallmarks ofFlorida
Florida 's regulations require Positive Lot Identification (PLI) for every package of produce that leaves a packinghouse or a supplier. The PLI allows for clear identification of the source of the tomatoes, but not necessarily the date it was grown. It also ensures a package, or lot, can be traced backward to the farm or forward to the buyer, said Martha Roberts, a consultant on food safety to theFlorida
The FDA seems to have the start of such an identification system in place as it allows tomatoes from southernFlorida andBaja ,Mexico , to enter theU.S.
The practice of mixing tomatoes from different farms in the packing or repacking process also is adding to the complexity of the trace-back.
Commingling occurs, for example, when buyers such as restaurants request a specific-size tomato, so that batches of produce from several farms are hand-sorted and packed together before shipment.
Roberts said theFlorida
Restaurant operators can do their part
In the long term, the industry is looking to improve its standards based on scientific research. For example, tomato growers inCalifornia
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The FDA developed its Food Protection Plan last fall, targeting prevention methods to improve traceability and speed up investigations. The agency — along with the tomato and restaurant industries — is pushing for long-awaited federal mandates for safe food handling of fresh high-risk produce such as tomatoes.
Until such mandates are in place, the restaurant industry needs to ensure the fresh produce it receives has been handled properly at all ends of the supply chain.
Knowing all the links in the supply chain is essential to preventing health crises like the current one with tomatoes, said Donna Garren, vice president of health and safety regulatory affairs for the National Restaurant Association.
The association encourages its members to develop a relationship with its suppliers in order "to ensure everyone along each point is doing what they can to ensure a safe product," Garren said.
Roberts agreed that restaurant operators must do their part.
"The restaurants are such an important key part of the food safety chain too," Roberts said. "Buy from somebody that has their product coded in which you would be able to get back if you had a problem. Just make sure you buy from somebody that's got good traceable records."
Richard Slawsky contributed to this story.
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