Thread: Mexico urges end of tainted tomato probe

Mexico urges end of tainted tomato probe
Jun. 12, 2008 11:14 AM
Bloomberg

Mexico, the largest supplier of tomatoes to the United States, urged the U.S. to finish its investigation of salmonella-tainted tomatoes that have sickened 167 people since April.

The investigation has slowed the sale of Mexican tomatoes to the U.S., according to an e-mail statement from Mexico's Agriculture Ministry.

About 84 percent of tomatoes the U.S. imports are from Mexico, according to the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has cleared 23 states, Puerto Rico and parts of Florida based on harvesting times and shipping patterns.

Canada and five other countries have been ruled out. Several states in the southwestern U.S., where the outbreak originated, and Mexico have not been cleared.

U.S. growers, which sell about $1.4 billion worth of tomatoes a year, have criticized the pace of the investigation.

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/ ... 12-on.html

Mexico urges???? I thought mexico demanded! Send cheap mexican Gas not tomatos

Salmonella scare floods Mexico with tomatoes
By Associated Press
Thursday, June 12, 2008 - Added 46m ago

MEXICO CITY - Export-quality tomatoes labeled "Ready to Eat" in English flooded Mexico City markets today after a salmonella scare in the U.S. stopped them from crossing the border.

There is no proof that Mexico provided the contaminated tomatoes that caused the alarm. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is still hunting for the source of the outbreak that has sickened at least 167 people in 17 U.S. states since mid-April.

The FDA has cleared imports from at least six countries — but not Mexico, which sends 80 percent of its tomato exports to the United States. Florida tomatoes are also under suspicion.

But some U.S. consumers already associate the outbreak with Mexican produce, and exports from Baja California came to a halt this week.

Jesus Macias, the sales manager at the Productora Agricola Industrial del Noreste, normally ships 50,000 boxes a day to an importer in Chula Vista, California. Since the scare, "we can’t sell a single box of tomatoes," he said.

Instead, he is shipping his top quality tomatoes to Mexican markets, and letting rot the lesser-quality produce normally sold to Mexicans.

At Mexico City’s bustling central supply market, where food arrives from across Mexico to supply 20 million people who live in and around the capital, truckloads of tomatoes are arriving in boxes originally meant for the U.S.

"Sweet treat. Premium quality," says lettering in English, advertising lost on Mexico’s Spanish speakers.

Most consumers do not even know about the U.S. salmonella scare. And those who do, rarely care. Mexicans are accustomed to washing all produce because the vegetables sold on the national market are not held to the same standards as those certified for export.

Sergio Martinez, a 40-year-old bricklayer buying 4.5 pounds (2 kilograms) of tomatoes, says he isn’t worried about a little salmonella. He washes all of his produce with bleach and water.

"What the U.S. doesn’t want is what we see here. They always send the best stuff over there, from avocados to tequila," he said. "What ends up here is second-rate. Almost all vegetables are contaminated with something because they water them with sewer water and put on a lot of chemicals."

Mexican consumers are benefiting from the scare. In the capital’s vegetable markets, consumers can now buy top quality tomatoes for 8 pesos per kilogram (35 U.S. cents a pound). That’s a third less than normal prices.

Mexican officials insist there’s nothing to worry about here.

"The Mexican tomato is safer and cleaner than ever," Agriculture Secretary Alberto Cardenas told Televisa network Thursday.

Even U.S. officials agree that certified Mexican exporters are among the safest in the world. Their fields are irrigated with fresh water, and their packing plants are staffed by workers covered head-to-toe in sterile clothing. Inspectors monitor the process at every step.

Ricardo Montiel, 41, manning a stand with mounds of tomatoes, apples and avocados, said it was unfair to single out Mexico without proof.

"The gringos are really demanding about quality," he said. "But the problem didn’t originate here. It is as easy as looking around and seeing that people haven’t gotten sick."

© Copyright 2008 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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Mexico urges end of tainted tomato probe

Why? Because it might lead to them?

Most consumers do not even know about the U.S. salmonella scare. And those who do, rarely care. Mexicans are accustomed to washing all produce because the vegetables sold on the national market are not held to the same standards as those certified for export.

Oh and us Americans are too stupid to? It's not on the outside to wash off...........it's on the inside! I mean how insulting can these people be.

"What ends up here is second-rate. Almost all vegetables are contaminated with something because they water them with sewer water and put on a lot of chemicals

Oh that's encouraging.

Ricardo Montiel, 41, manning a stand with mounds of tomatoes, apples and avocados, said it was unfair to single out Mexico without proof.

I don't recall one article or news report where Mexico was singled out. All I know NOW is there is a host of countries who have passed and they haven't.

"Sweet treat. Premium quality," says lettering in English, advertising lost on Mexico’s Spanish speakers.

Looses it's advertising to English speakers as well.

Oh, well that's just tough what Mexico wants.

Are we in the process of urging a nationwide boycott of produce grown there? If not, maybe it's something we should consider........run them out of business quicker that way.

About 84 percent of tomatoes the U.S. imports are from Mexico, according to the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization.


You know, it just crossed my mind that this would be an excellent business opportunity for home gardeners. With imported produce being so over priced and not very high quality, not to mention tainted all too often, now is as good a time as any to bring back the concept of the roadside stand offering home grown items.

I know I miss those days and am sure I'm not the only one.

"What the U.S. doesn’t want is what we see here. They always send the best stuff over there, from avocados to tequila," he said. "What ends up here is second-rate. Almost all vegetables are contaminated with something because they water them with sewer water and put on a lot of chemicals."

Thanks for the heads up, amigo! All the more reason to extend the probe. I will NEVER buy any food from Mexico. Let them sell it to their citizens, we don't want it or need it!

Tourists are advised to consume bottled water while in Mexico--even to use bottled water to brush their teeth.

If the water is unsafe to drink, it's unsafe to wash fruit and vegetables.

"What ends up here is second-rate. Almost all vegetables are contaminated with something because they water them with sewer water and put on a lot of chemicals."

Now this is a big "aha" lightbulb moment. DUH!! Sewer water, how sick. As for the idea that salmonella generally is from fecal contamination, well there you go.

Many farms will use chicken manure, which has salmonella in it, if it is not let to sit for a period of time (known as "aged manure"). They then "liquefy" it with water and other fertilizing agents and then spray it on the fields. This is an ok practise so long as the manure is not fresh and still seething with bacteria. However, plants can become internally tainted if it is not properly handled (just as well, I was always taught not to eat fruit or berries that had grown too close to a busy road).

I can only guess that a supplier to these farms, of fertilizer products, could be potentially to blame. ALL of these farmers, in all places, need to check their fertilizers and the USDA needs ot be on top of that.

What the U.S. doesn’t want is what we see here. They always send the best stuff over there, from avocados to tequila," he said. "What ends up here is second-rate. Almost all vegetables are contaminated with something because they water them with sewer water and put on a lot of chemicals."

Oh dear God! When on earth is our governments love fest with Mexico ever going to end. How many American lives have to be put in jeopardy in order for our elected officials to wake up!

I will be thinking about this ever time I look at a piece of fruit or vegetable.

Wonderful!