Food Safety Needs to Hog the Spotlight

I must say I was surprised this morning. Surprised, but delighted.

The four words that elicited my gleeful shock were “Pathogens in Our Pork.” It was the title of Nicholas Kristof’s Op-Ed piece, which ran yesterday but which first crossed my path this a.m. as I scanned the Sunday New York Times’ headlines residing in my inbox.

Of course, my surprised delight did not stem from the subject itself, as it is one of grave importance. Nor did it arise from the accompanying article being my introduction to this issue, as I have been tracking it for a few months. Rather, it was the fact that this morning, with the Moon still in excavating Scorpio, that this swept-under-the-rug food-safety concern was finally seeing more of the light of day. This gave my inner optimist hope that with increased awareness would come further cries of action for safeguarding our food supply, which was what brought a glint to my sleepy, pre-coffee eyes and a smile to my face.

What is the issue to which I—and Mr. Kristof—refer?

Pigs—as well as other animals—are routinely given antibiotics, not just to treat disease but as a means of prevention. Unfortunately, this rather ubiquitous use of drugs is one factor thought to contribute to the growth of “superbugs,” including strains of the deadly bacteria known as MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus). While animals may not be the sole route of MRSA transmission, the idea that we could catch a disease from our food is alarming, to say the least. Not only have researchers found health-compromising strains of this renegade bacterium at hog farms (first identified in the Netherlands five years ago and in the U.S. just this year) but studies have also revealed that MRSA-contaminated pork has found its way to some supermarkets. In the U.S., there are currently no government-sanctioned requirements for the mandatory testing of livestock to determine its safety.

While the idea that we could catch MRSA from eating a pork chop is yet to be confirmed, many people have this looming question in the back of their minds. If you do too, know that while cooking your pork well may be a good strategy to reduce risk, it isn’t a complete safeguard. For example, there could be a possibility for infection if you’re handling contaminated raw pork and you touch your mouth or nose. Additionally, this “just cook it and all will be fine” perspective doesn’t take into consideration the potential health risks experienced by farmers and food handlers, let along the animals themselves.

Safeguarding your personal food supply

The MRSA-hog connection is yet another example of the importance of purchasing food from a supplier whose methods of animal rearing are safe and sustainable. Organic pork may be among your best bets since to be certified organic in the U.S., meat must come from livestock that are only given antibiotics in the case of disease; therefore, these animals will not have been routinely dosed with medications like many of their commercially raised brethren. In addition, if there are farmers’ markets in your area, try to connect with local hog farmers; talk to them about their animal-rearing methods to ascertain the quality of the pork products they sell.

Signaling a potential for sea change in the way that our government addresses such issues, just this week President Obama called for the creation of a Food Safety Working Group. Concern is at the top of mind of many in government now, reflective of the current peanut-salmonella debacle; therefore, it’s a good time to contact your Senators and Representatives to share with them any concerns you may have about this issue.

I started this post by talking about the surprised delight I felt this morning. Yet, what will truly bring me surprised delight will be the day when these types of issues are non-existent and when our food supply is at once safe, sustainable, and health-supportive.