I had previously stated that the egg recall involved three hundred million eggs and three states, but according to msnbc tonight, that number is now more than half a billion eggs and twenty two states. Holy cow!! It's hard to believe that we can mess up something so simple as chicken and eggs. Here is the list of states where contaminated eggs are believed to have been sold:
The eggs were sold in Arkansas, California, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Ohio, Texas and Wisconsin.
They were sold under the following brand names:
Albertson, Boomsma's, Dutch Farms, Farm Fresh, Hillandale, Kemps, Lucerne, Lund, Mountain Dairy, Ralph's, Shoreland, Sunshine and Trafficanda.
The moral of this story is that you can't trust what's in the supermarket. What's the answer? Know your farmer. That's it. If we all take responsibility for the food choices that we make and support our local food economy and build relationships with the people that grow our food the fears of diseased and contaminated food become almost non existent. Not only will it be cleaner food, but it will be so much fresher and tastier that you won't go back.
For example, if you've ever had eggs fresh off of the farm you will never want to go back to factory eggs again. When we got our first eggs out of our hens last year it was like trying a new food because the yolks were so brightly colored that they were nearly glowing orange. I realize now that that is what an egg is supposed to look like not the pale yellow runny yolks that we get out of the grocery stores. In fact I read in a book called "Omnivore's Dilemma" by Michael Pollan, that at one time the large scale egg producers in the U.S. were adding red dye to the feed the hens ate so that it would color the yolks and they wouldn't look so gray. (the pale color of the yolk has to do with diet and living conditions, but that is an essay for another soap box) Now folks I don't know if that particular thing still happens in 2010 with the red dye, but I can assure you that the eggs are no fresher or safer now than they were at that time. Do yourself and your community good, and know your farmer. Start looking for ways to get your meats and cheeses and eggs and produce from a good honest farmer. Start looking into growing your own, CSA's (community supported agriculture) and various other outlets such as farmer's markets. If you can shake the hand of the man or woman who grew your food and have a conversation with them you're are taking a step in the right direction. I say it again: KNOW YOUR FARMER!
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