Health Law

Sprout advice from a Sprouter

By Marler Clark

I recently received this comment to a recent post that I called ...:

"You need to buy your seeds organically grown. This will almost ensure that there will be a lesser chance of bacterial problems.

Before you begin sprouting you should rinse your seeds very well with a mixture of hydrogen peroxide. The hydrogen peroxide will kill any bacteria. "

The picture to the left is an actual sprout growing kit.  Didn't even know they existed at the consumer level, but that's beside the point.  With regard to the sprouter's comment, and putting aside for the time being the thought that organic food is a safeguard against bacterial contamination, here are a couple of thoughts about this comment:  (1) I appreciate that the person who wrote this comment, who is in the sprout industry, seems to have a genuine interest in producing a safer product (why else would you email a lawyer who represents the victims of this outbreak . . . at least one not filled with expletives) and (2) I'm certainly willing to serve as a sounding board or discussion forum to start generating new ideas on sprout safety.  There are too many people sick.

Actually, there are so many people sick in different areas of the country, and such a long exposure period . . . I am really beginning to wonder what Caudill Seed knew about its sprouts and when they knew it.  What testing were they running on product that they were selling?  Well, give me a few weeks and I'll be able to tell you much more on how this outbreak happened.

Full post as published by Food Poison Blog on May 11, 2009 (boomark / email).