The sanctimony gets rich listening to self-proclaimed environmentalists or cost-cutters or advocates burning up carbon and racking up frequent-flier points to spread their gospel.

Canadians are apparently upset that Bill Teeter, who works for the Canadian Food Inspection Agency out of Guelph, Ont., travelled to Ottawa 45 times between January 18 and December 22, 2011, racking up bills in excess of $100,000 on a mission to uncover ways to trim government spending.

Global Winnipeg thinks the bad part is Teeter claimed $446.57 in hospitality expenses in 2011, shopping at Costco, A & W, a local shawarma restaurant, Canadian Tire and Boston Pizza to host three meals with government officials.

This guy screams Canadiana and sir, I salute your austerity. He probably even kept the Canadian Tire money for himself, maybe accumulating enough to buy a Tim Hortons coffee.

The bad part is this: “Teeter had a team of 14 people in Ottawa, working with secret documents that could neither be transferred over networks nor transported from Ottawa, a spokesman for the CFIA said. “

Why does the taxpayer-funded food agency have so many secret documents?

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Restaurants are about making money. So is everything involved with food. It’s nice if that food is healthy – however that is defined at the time – and abundant and whatever other marketing spins are out there, but follow the money.

That’s why business publications still exist, to provide puff pieces about titans of commerce who, especially in the U.S., reimagine their histories into storylines.

It’s about the money.

Jimmy-I-decided-to-pull-raw-sprouts-from-my-menus-after-5-outbreaks Liautaud said as part of a National Restaurant Association Show panel in Chicago last week that in 2003 he was unhappy with his potato chip supplier; they didn't treat him very well, "So I figured out how to make potato chips myself. I designed the bag and everything. And my bags have 2½ times the chips that were in the other chip bags. What's better is I'm making a lot more money with the Jimmy Chips than I did before."

Great. Maybe you can figure out what to do about sprouts rather than continue to sicken unsuspecting customers.

For the ambulance chasers, the story notes Jimmy John's Gourmet Sandwiches is a 1,300-plus-unit chain that pulled in $895 million in 2011, according to Technomic.

Liautaud described his relationship with franchisees as one full of "tough love." A corporate team is in each restaurant every 30 days to make sure things are running smoothly.

"It works for us. I call it proactive discipline," he said. "Especially if you're a new franchisor, it's important to be in the store to make sure it's successful."

Success in the world of Jimmy John’s apparently does not include serving safe food.

The fancy-pants Letchworth Hall Hotel in Hertfordshire, U.K., near London, was ordered to pay more than £12,000 after pleading guilty to two charges of poor food hygiene practice on Friday.

Hertford Magistrates’ Court heard that 49 of the 118 guests at the hotel in Letchworth Lane who had eaten a chicken liver pate starter had reported illness after the meal in September 2011.

Subsequently 22 cases of a Campylobacter infection were confirmed, including the bride and groom who both became ill while on honeymoon in Las Vegas. Symptoms of the infection included stomach cramps and diarrhea.

North Herts District Council (NHDC) received the initial complaint five days after the wedding on September 8 and two environmental health officers visited the hotel to investigate.

The officers established that the chef had cooked the chicken livers to 60 degrees C, in breach of hotel policy and Food Standards Agency guidance which recommends a temperature of 75 degrees C to prevent food poisoning.

Letchworth Hall Hotel admitted undercooking the pate, rendering it unsafe for human consumption, and failing to ensure the kitchen followed the company food safety policy and procedures, including a failure of management to uphold those procedures.

My friends at the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics are at it again. Last week they recycled a press release on the dangers of reusable bags that was full of holes, This week Sarah Kriegar of The Academy decided to remind folks that washing pre-washed leafy greens is a good idea.

“Fruits and vegetables are an important part of a healthy eating plan, and should fill half of your plate, but just like any food product, extra precautions should be taken to reduce the risk of food poisoning,” said Sarah Krieger, a registered dietitian and academy spokeswoman, in a statement.
She said (among other things -ben):

- Buy loose produce rather than pre-packaged, but if you do buy packaged lettuce or carrots or other items, wash them even if they say “ready to eat.”

I'd like to see what data The Academy has that shows this recommendation would result in risk-reduction.

Washing pre-washed leafy greens in the home isn't going to accomplish further risk-reduction than what was applied at processing; tight attachment or internalization of the target pathogens are likely for whatever is left when it gets to someones kitchen.

A review paper published in Food Protection Trends in 2007 contained guidelines developed by a national panel of food safety folks and concluded:

"… leafy green salad in sealed bags labeled ‘washed’ or ‘ready-to-eat’ that are produced in a facility inspected by a regulatory authority and operated under cGMPs, does not need additional washing at the time of use unless specifically directed on the label.”
The panel also advised that additional washing of ready-to-eat green salads is not likely to enhance safety.

“The risk of cross contamination from food handlers and food contact surfaces used during washing may outweigh any safety benefit that further washing may confer."

A table of leafy green-related outbreak is available at http://bites.ksu.edu/leafy-greens-related-outbreaks. I'm not sure there's any data out there that shows washing would have been a protective step for any of the outbreaks.

The merits of washing produce at home are debatable - many papers show somewhere around a 1-log reduction of pathogens from washing produce with no difference whether the fruit or vegetable was washed with water or some sort of sanitizer. A ten-fold reduction is okay if there isn’t much pre-home contamination, but washing as a kill step sucks and is really more about increasing quality(removing grit). Effective risk reduction actions for fresh produce are more likely found in production, processing and food service preparation (where contamination often occurs) – not in home kitchens.
 

This is the chicken salad sandwich Amy will have for lunch later today.

I’ve done what I can to make sure she doesn’t barf (at least from this sandwich). And that means using commercial mayonnaise.

In a manner food pornographers usually reserve for wine and raw milk cheese, the New York Times devotes 1,661 words to mayonnaise today, and not once mentions the risk of using raw eggs.

Maybe in response, the Association for Dressings & Sauces – those folks know how to party – stated today that more than 60 years of research has proven that commercially prepared mayonnaise does not cause foodborne illness.

Commercial mayonnaise and mayonnaise-type dressings contain pasteurized eggs while additional ingredients such as vinegar and lemon juice create a high-acid environment that slows bacterial growth.

For me and my family, it’s not worth the risk. Despite the proclamations of foodies, raw egg mayo is not the key ingredient in a chicken salad sandwich; it’s the lime, which are plentiful and awesome in Australia.

For the sandwich, right, I used leftover chicken breast from the roasted whole bird that was part of dinner last night (covered in lime, rosemary, basil, sage and garlic, the remnants which are now rendering in the stock pot). I added small amounts of pink onion, celery, red pepper, dill pickle, Dijon mustard, and commercial mayonnaise, mixed and slathered between two slices of homemade bread from yesterday (30% rye, 50% whole wheat, 20% white flours) and topped with Mesclun mix and tomato slices.

My 4 a.m. risk ranking would be the cleanliness of my hands, the lettuce and tomato. Australia has a problem with Salmonella outbreaks linked to raw egg dishes so I use commercial mayo. The chicken was temperature verified to greater than 165F last night and leftovers refrigerated within an hour.

Sorenne doesn’t go in much for sandwiches, but she will have some chunks of chicken meat included in her lunch. Tonight will probably be bulgur and chicken and other stuff.

When someone asks, What’s wrong with Kansas, I reply with, What’s wrong with Canada?

My journalism friends have long complained that the flow of information about public health – public anything – is a tinkle in Canada compared to other places.

According to a report in The Province, British Columbia.'s Liberal government is poised to further choke off the flow of public information, this time with respect to disease outbreaks.

The Animal Health Act, expected to be passed into law by month's end, expressly over-rides B.C.'s Freedom of Information Act, duct-taping shut the mouths of any citizens - or journalists - who would publicly identify the location of an outbreak of agriculture-related disease such as bird flu.

"A person must refuse, despite the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, to disclose . . . information that would reveal that a notifiable or reportable disease is or may be present in a specific place or on or in a specific vehicle," Section 16 of the Act reads.

It is quite conceivable that the provincial government, in the event of a disease outbreak at a farm, would delay releasing a warning in order to protect the farm in question or the industry it's part of.

In that event, should you as a citizen hear about the outbreak, or if you were an employee at an affected farm, you would be breaking the law by speaking publicly about it or bringing concerns to the media.

Will the law also apply to farms identified as sources of foodborne illness, like tomatoes from a B.C. greenhouse, or BSE traced to a B.C. farm, or stupidity traced to a government bureaucrat who lives on a farm?

The proposed law will probably have no practical effect because there is no animal disease or foodborne illness traced to B.C. farms; it’s all imported.

Canada, where complacency rules.

When it comes to social issues I'm a bit of a libertarian hippy. I've looked the part (big bushy beard and longer thinning hair); used to play ultimate frisbee (poorly); and, our first-born was delivered at home. I saw The Dead, after Jerry, but I never really got into Phish.

The philosophy I've embraced around food safety is let people eat what they want. 

Extension folks like me should provide the best available evidence culled from the literature to help eaters calculate the risks and benefits of food choices. Present the info in a compelling way and then step back to let the individual do their thing.

Hopefully the choice results in the least amount of barf.

As North Carolina moves down the path of adopting the U.S FDA model food code, restaurant patrons will be able to order an undercooked burger, and the restaurant able to serve it, without risking a lower inspection grade. The responsibility to communicate the risks associated with undercooked burgers, and other raw/undercooked animal-derived foods (eggs, poultry, fish) lies with the restaurant. Risk must be disclosed somehow, and a reminder presented to the patron when they order.

Temperature guidance for cooking burgers doesn't change (the food code suggests 155F for 15 seconds or 160F for 5-log reduction), just the ability for the restaurant to respond to patron requests - with the caveat of the mandatory risk discussion. And the risk dialogue applies to stuff like Caesar salad dressing, hollandaise sauce and sushi.

According to Kathleen Purvis of the Charlotte Observer:

The N.C. Commission for Public Health this week approved the adoption of most of the 2009 federal food code. Among other changes, it would allow restaurant customers to order raw or undercooked foods if the restaurant provides a warning – usually a note on the menu – to remind you it’s dangerous. A similar procedure is already followed in many states, including South Carolina.

Seasonal eating is easy and a privilege in the sub-tropical climate of Brisbane – it ain’t Canada.

Those sweet purple (red) onions, delicious roasted on their own or in many dishes, were $0.19/kg a couple of weeks ago (something shy of $0.09/pound).

I’m still feeling good about that deal. And an excellent addition to tonight’s duck stew.

So I’m not sure why people get other people to chop up their onions but they do, even in Canada, where onions are a winter staple.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is warning the public not to consume the Gills Onions brand Fresh Diced Red Onions described below because the product may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes.

The affected product, Gills Onions brand Fresh Diced Red Onions, Product of U.S.A., is sold in 198 g packages, bearing UPC 6 43550 00045 0, Best Before date 05/17/12, and lot code 51RDA1A2119.

This product is known to be distributed in Ontario and may have been distributed nationally.

There have been no reported illnesses associated with the consumption of this product.