Sludge Watch ==> Calif. Veggie Producers Celebrate Killed FoodSafety Bill

[Jim Smallwood]

Hi Maureen,

As a follow up to Dole: They wanted me to pay for certified lab tests to prove my treatment unit kills E.Coli. Even though we have 90 years worth of documents proving that electrocoagulation (electricity, you know, like putting
someone in the electric chair) kills E. Coli, lysteria and other living organisms 99.99%. Cost for tests: $11,000 to $35,000. I'm going cough up $11,000 so I can prove that the unit works? So, that's the last I heard of them. They can
probably tell the regulators and others "he didn't follow through; likely scapegoat. So much for them regulating themselves. They went back to business as usual.  Now that things have blown over. Telling me they don't pay for tests,
and I would have to, proves to me that they feel the responsibility is NOT on them. Right? Anybody home?

As far as my experience, I can honestly say that Dole has done absolutely nothing, and cost me $800 (I should ask them to reimburse me from petty cash). The 4 trips I took to Salinas was on my dime, out of my own pocket, maybe $6-700
bucks. Hell, I could have planted an organic garden for less than half of that.

And if history repeats itself, they will do nothing and, people need to be warned not to eat any produce from Salinas or Watsonville, or Dole, or any of the other processors; you know, just to take responsibility for their own health
and welfare, and, be safe. No one else is watching our for our health and welfare....

What I don't understand is if you poison your wife or husband and kill them you go to prison. If your an irresponsible farmer or food processor you can kill people and, it's legal.

Regards, Jim Smallwood

Maureen Reilly wrote:

> Sludgewatch Admin:
>
> I don't imagine there is much to celebrate in the households of people who
> became ill from the spinach and lettuce outbreaks.  People are not always
> aware of being ill when they have an Ecoli O157 infection.  In the Walkerton
> Outbreak (Ecoli O147H7 and campylobacter jejeuni) follow up for renal
> function in the community found that many people were suffering renal
> failure and didn't even know that they had been infected.  There is an
> 'iceberg' effect where many people may be losing renal function and be
> unaware of it.  Normally people do not become aware of renal failure until
> they have lost about 95% of kidney functioning.
>
> For a discussion of Walkerton followup report:
> http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/538684
>
> There is still a staggering lack of understanding about the risks of food
> contamination from the use of sewage sludge, sewage effluent (Title 22 water
> in Calif), and untreated animal manures.  The regulators - the people we
> rely on- are simply not on top of these issues.
>
> (Want illustrations...contact Admin)
>
> ..................................................................
>
> Sun, Jul. 01, 2007
>
> Vegetable producers celebrate killed bill
> Legislation to prevent more E. coli outbreaks is opposed by industry that
> assures it will police itself
> By Bob Cuddy
> bcuddy at thetribunenews.com
>
> Growers of lettuce and other leafy green vegetables in the county are
> celebrating the defeat of a state bill that would have imposed severe
> restrictions on the multimillion-dollar industry in the wake of last year’s
> E. coli outbreak.
>
> A package of bills that would have regulated the leafy greens industry died
> in the Senate Agricultural Committee on Wednesday after growers statewide
> insisted that they could regulate themselves.
>
> “It is in the industry’s best interest to have a food supply we can trust,”
> the San Luis Obispo County Farm Bureau said in a statement.
>
> The bureau said almost all growers of leafy greens have committed to a
> program to inspect farms and implement other safety controls.
>
> There are strong financial reasons for the industry to avoid another
> outbreak, according to Richard Quandt of the Grower-Shipper Vegetable
> Association in Guadalupe. Spinach sales plummeted af-
>
> ter the E. coli outbreak, he said, and “there’s tremendous liability if
> someone gets sick” because of lax agricultural procedures.
>
> Leafy greens are a major industry in this agricultural county. Production
> includes head lettuce at 6,171 acres; leaf lettuce at 2,079 acres; cabbage
> at 1,278 acres; and spinach at 381 acres.
>
> Leafy greens are “big in this county,” said Quandt, because of the marine
> climate. He said there is “tremendously fertile soil” in the coastal valley.
>
> Since the outbreak last year, there has been strong pressure to protect the
> public against a repeat. The E. coli outbreak killed three people and
> sickened more than 200 people nationwide.
>
> Contamination was traced to a 50-acre field in San Benito County. Another
> outbreak was linked to a lettuce-growing region in the Central Valley.
>
> The industry-led inspection program debuted in April but is still being
> finalized. It is voluntary, but 111 California produce handlers had signed
> up as of last week, representing nearly 100 percent of the leafy greens
> grown in the state, according to the state Department of Food and
> Agriculture.
>
> The defeated bill would have implemented a state-run inspection program and
> given the state authority to recall tainted produce.
>
> Growers, shippers and processors would have faced a lengthy list of rules:
> uncomposted manure could not be used as fertilizer; portable toilets could
> not be put in fields; and irrigation water and soil would be tested.
>
> In addition, companies would have had to create tracking systems that could
> quickly trace contaminated produce from farm to processor, distributor and
> retailer.
>
> State Sen. Dean Florez, DShafter, the bill’s sponsor, said self-regulation
> wouldn’t work.
>
> “There’s no doubt that the time for industry-only solutions are over,”he
> said. “Quite frankly, the voluntary approach has not worked—will not work.”
>
> But the Assembly bowed to industry’s argument that they should be allowed to
> handle things themselves.
>
> “The industry has come together,” said state Sen. Abel Maldonado, who fought
> the bill in the Senate. Legislators finally agreed to “give the industry a
> chance before the government steps in.”
>
> Maldonado said he considers the bills dead, but he noted that they could
> reappear.
>
> “If there’s another outbreak, I guarantee (it will return).”
>
> The Fresno Bee contributed to this report.
>
> http://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/local/story/81683.html
>
> ''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''
>
> TOP 20 COUNTY AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS
>
> • Wine Grapes all: $151,990,000
>
> • Broccoli: $64,044,000
>
> • Cattle and Calves: $59,869,000
>
> • Strawberries: $40,051,000
>
> • Vegetable Transplants: $32,880,000
>
> • Cut Flowers: $29,607,000
>
> • Head lettuce: $29,253,000
>
> • Indoor Decoratives: $28,063,000
>
> • Avocados hass: $23,445,000
>
> • Celery: $14,802,000
>
> SOURCE: County Dept. of Agriculture
>
> • Oriental Vegetables: $13,205,000
>
> • Leaf Lettuce: $12,605,000
>
> • Cauliflower: $11,819,000
>
> • Rangeland grazed: $10,250,000
>
> • Outdoor Ornamentals: $8,602,000
>
> • Cabbage: $7,824,000
>
> • Bell peppers: $7,437,000
>
> • Lemons: $5,779,000
>
> • Bedding Plants: $5,641,000 • Alfalfa Hay: $3,129,000
>
> ..............................
>
> NOTE: To view the article with Web enhancements, go to:
> http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/538684
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Acute bacterial gastroenteritis linked to increased long-term risk of
> hypertension and reduced kidney function
>
> Pam G Harrison, Mhs
> Medscape Medical News 2005. © 2005 Medscape
>
> June 1, 2005
> London, ON - Residents of Walkerton, ON, who developed acute bacterial
> gastroenteritis from drinking contaminated water five years ago are more
> likely to have newly diagnosed hypertension and reduced renal function now
> than those who were not affected at the time of the outbreak [1].
>
> "We observed a relative increase of 33%, or an absolute increase of 9%, in
> the rate of newly diagnosed hypertension among participants who had
> experienced severe gastroenteritis during the outbreak," Walkerton Health
> Study investigators report. Increased rates of hypertension after bacterial
> gastroenteritis were also accompanied by evidence of reduced kidney
> function.
>
> This is the first time that acute bacterial gastroenteritis from toxogenic
> Escherichia coli has been associated with an increased risk of long-term
> hypertension and renal impairment. "I think we need to see these findings
> replicated first," lead author Dr Amit X Garg (University of Western
> Ontario, London) told renalwire. "But clearly, they do suggest that there
> may be a role here for following people who develop these kinds of
> infections and to screen them for reduced kidney function."
>
> The study was published May 27, 2005 online in the Canadian Medical
> Association Journal.
>
> Previously healthy adults
> In May 2000, more than 2300 individuals developed acute gastroenteritis due
> to contamination of the regional drinking water supply in Walkerton with E
> coli 0157:H7 and Campylobacter species. Among these, there were 27 episodes
> of hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) and six deaths. A review of the
> literature undertaken by these investigators suggested that approximately
> 25% of patients who experience HUS go on to develop hypertension, reduced
> kidney function, and proteinuria.
>
> "That's the extreme example," Garg noted, "but that was the rationale for
> wanting to look at people who developed [only] acute gastroenteritis [during
> the outbreak] . . . to see if it, too, might be associated with hypertension
> and reduced kidney function."
>
> The Walkerton Health Study investigators followed the long-term risk of
> developing hypertension and reduced kidney function among 1958 previously
> healthy adults following the outbreak. "Of the participants, 675 had been
> asymptomatic during the outbreak, 909 had had moderate symptoms of acute
> self-limited gastroenteritis, and 374 had had severe symptoms that
> necessitated medical attention," the authors write. Each participant visited
> a clinic two, three, and four years after the initial outbreak, where they
> underwent a physical examination, completed a standardized questionnaire,
> and provided blood and urine specimens. The primary end point of the study
> was newly diagnosed hypertension (140/90 mm Hg), while secondary outcomes
> included the presence of reduced kidney function, microalbuminuria, or
> macroalbuminuria.
>
> At a mean follow-up of 3.7 years, 27% of participants who remained
> asymptomatic during the outbreak had been diagnosed with hypertension. Among
> those who developed moderate gastroenteritis during the outbreak, 32.3%
> developed hypertension, as did 35.9% of those who had severe gastroenteritis
> (trend p=0.009). "Those who had had acute gastroenteritis had systolic and
> diastolic blood pressures that were 2 to 4 mm Hg higher than the
> measurements of participants who had remained asymptomatic during the
> outbreak," investigators add.
>
> Adjusted risk for new hypertension at follow-up in those with and without
> acute gastroenteritis
>
> Group
> Hazard ratio
> 95% CI
>
> Asymptomatic during outbreak
> Ref
> -
>
> Moderate gastroenteritis
> 1.15
> 0.97-1.35
>
> Severe gastroenteritis
> 1.28
> 1.04-1.56
>
> To download table as a slide, click on slide logo below
>
> None of the previously healthy participants developed end-stage renal
> failure by study end. However, 6.9% of participants who developed severe
> gastroenteritis during the outbreak had a glomerular filtration rate (GFR)
> below 60 mL/min per 1.73 m2 at follow-up, compared with 3.9% of those with
> moderate gastroenteritis and 2.2% of those who remained asymptomatic.
>
> Potential explanations
> There are several potential explanations for how an episode of acute
> bacterial gastroenteritis from toxogenic E coli might precipitate
> hypertension and renal impairment. First, in the setting of acute infection,
> "you can develop enough of a toxin load that you can get some silent kidney
> impairment," Garg told renalwire. With some nephron loss, remaining nephrons
> must work "overtime" to make up for those that were lost. "Over time, this
> can lead to hypertension and reduced kidney function," he added.
>
> Alternatively, bacterial infections can lead to a state of chronic
> inflammation, and this may also reduce kidney function. The situation in
> Walkerton also precipitated considerable psychosocial stress during and even
> after the outbreak. "We know that psychosocial stress is associated with
> hypertension, so those most severely affected may have been under severe
> psychosocial stress as well," Garg said.
>
> Garg did not feel that additional screening for hypertension is called for
> in patients who develop acute bacterial gastroenteritis, "as people should
> have their blood pressure monitored every year anyway." But screening for
> reduced kidney function—not normally recommended—might be considered for
> patients who develop infections similar to those experienced by Walkerton
> residents.
>
> "More important, maintaining safe drinking water remains essential to human
> health, as transient bacterial contaminations may have implications well
> beyond a period of acute self-limited illness," investigators add.
>
> Source
>
> Garg AX, Moist L, Matsell D, et al. Risk of hypertension and reduced kidney
> function after acute gastroenteritis from bacteria-contaminated drinking
> water. CMAJ 2005; DOI: 10.1503/cmaj.050581. Available at:
> http://www.cmaj.ca.
>
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