22 Comments
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Patrick P's avatar

Thanks for your beautiful public awareness announcement. I guess getting rid of FDA regulations on our food sources wasn't such a wise plan.

Escape Artist Poetry's avatar

I’ll sell you my raspberries cheap. My arugula too. I take Venmo.

MamaCarole's avatar

Ha ha ha!!! This is fantastic!!!

Carole Roseland's avatar

Gad you liked it, and thanks for restacking! I majored in microbiology, so when there’s an outbreak of something, I always get interested. I’m glad I’m not a microbiologist, or I know what I’d be doing right now in Michigan. Hopefully, this epidemic will be controlled soon.

MamaCarole's avatar

You’re welcome for the restack and no wonder you hit the nail on its head.

Jane Deegan's avatar

Another reason to plant my own veggies in the summer. Sadly there will be more of this without certain guidelines in place etc...

Petra's avatar

Yes, I'm aware. It sucks because I love eating salad!

Carole Roseland's avatar

7000 cases now here in Michigan. I never eat bagged lettuce, although I’m still eating boxed arugula and have survived so far.

Petra's avatar

7000 cases? Crazy!

Wendy  Gray's avatar

Love that you wrote a piece about this, Carole! Even though a serious issue, especially if one is exposed, I found myself having a few chuckles. Forgive me! I imagine I wouldn't be finding humor in it if it decided to hang out....FOR A MONTH, YOU SAY!? Good Lord, that sure does make one not want to eat the healthy stuff! I have raspberries and blueberries nearly every day and I am sure hoping they are not sharing this yuck! Having it in your area has to make you a bit nervous and disappointed, though good reason to buy vegies from the local farmers market! Wishing you all the best! Hope the issue ends soon. 💜

Carole Roseland's avatar

I never eat “bag” lettuce, and Taco Bell has gotten outrageously expensive, so I’ve dodged the bullet so far. I also eat raspberries and blueberries every day, and I’m not sick…yet. They did identify Taylor

Farms iceberg lettuce from Mexico as being a major cause. I did hope it would be a bit amusing, I guess!

Wendy  Gray's avatar

With you, there! Not a fan of “bag” lettuce. I definitely wash anything I purchase from box store or the farmer’s market. I am usually not as fearful of a bacteria or bugs as much as I am concerned about the sprays used on them. Still, does washing get it all? I somehow doubt it does. 💜

Stanley Wotring's avatar

Good advice!

Michael Yearout in the desert's avatar

Thank you Carole. It's time to start washing all those "triple washed greens" for sure. I can tell you I am certinally going to do it from now on.

Carole Roseland's avatar

The stuff in plastic bags scares me the most.

Kathleen Hobbs's avatar

Carole, I love the music, brings back memories of my disco days. Thanks for the update

Carole Roseland's avatar

It is light techno/scientific, my description.

Kathleen Hobbs's avatar

I have bags of frozen raspberries in my freezer from last year still good. Had some with my yogurt the other day delicious. And it looks like the raspberry bushes currently, we have plenty of fresh raspberries.

Carole Roseland's avatar

I think raspberries are probably OK in this case, although the disease has been connected with raspberries in other cases. It looks like lettuce in this instance. They’re yummy, and I try to eat some every day.

Carole Roseland's avatar

Yeah, I had that in there to begin with but I wanted a short poem/song. It went:

It seems we’ve got more problems

With food-related sicknesses

Thanks to our pared-down government

And those with great skull thicknesses.

David Briggs's avatar

What pared down government? Did you see them leave?

Carole Roseland's avatar

There were major staffing cuts at the CDC, FDA and Department of Agriculture. Fewer people means more work for those left and potential delays in investigating infectious disease outbreaks. State health departments also track statistics, and that’s how the Taco Bell source was found in Michigan, but they worked with the FDA and CDC. They could not have figured this out alone.