Arizona Food Service Network

The Arizona Food Service Network connects all people, events, resources, and organizations associated with Arizona food, food service, and food science.

food safety

Local man sickened by E. coli sues Idaho distributor

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An Ada County man is suing an Idaho distributor claiming lettuce it sold to Costco Wholesale sickened him with E. coli.

The civil lawsuit, filed in 4th District Court on Aug. 17, claims Jordan Anglen, a 23-year-old Costco employee, bought a Caesar salad on March 25 from the food court at Costco on Cole Road in Boise, which sickened him days later. According to the complaint, he tested positive for the same strain of E. coli as a nationwide outbreak that occurred earlier this year.

Read more at the source: Local man sickened by E. coli sues Idaho distributor

How to Tell Whether Expired Food Is Safe to Eat

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Every day the average American throws out nearly a pound of food, according to a recent study from the Department of Agriculture. There are plenty of reasons why good, usable food gets tossed—picky kids, overstocked pantries, or even leftovers that sit in refrigerators too long.

But another major factor is the misconception about what all of those dates on food package labels—“sell by,” “use by,” and “best if used by”—really mean. Ninety percent of Americans misinterpret the dates on labels, according to a recent study from the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and throw out food that could still be consumed or frozen for later use.

That raises the question: If expiration dates aren’t a reliable gauge of food spoilage, how does a consumer know what to keep and what to toss?

 

Read more from the source:  How to Tell Whether Expired Food Is Safe to Eat

Parasite risk in wraps, salads spurs warning; romaine blamed

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Federal officials issued a public health alert Monday night warning people to watch for signs of parasitic infections if they have eaten any of more than two dozen varieties of wraps and salads sold nationwide by retailers including Kroger and Trader Joe’s.

The distributor of the ready-to-eat products said lettuce supplied by Fresh Express is responsible for the health alert. Indianapolis-based distributor Caito Foods LLC reported that officials with Fresh Express had issued a recall notice for chopped romaine that was used in the wraps and salads. The products are packaged under a variety of brand names.

Read more from the source: Parasite risk in wraps, salads spurs warning; romaine blamed