Sprouts

It is not news to anyone who reads this magazine that sprouts, specifically green sprouts, have been the poster child for a fresh produce item that causes more than its share of food safety concerns. In the U.S. and Canada from 1989 to 2016, 58 illness outbreaks were attributed to green sprouts. Of the resultant 4,032 illnesses, 95 percent were caused by Salmonella and 5 percent by Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli.

As the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)’s website states, “In outbreaks associated with sprouts, the seed is typically the source of the bacteria.”