Contamination in food handling can cause illness. E. coli bacteria are often the culprits in such cases. This is why food handlers are required to wash their hands thoroughly after using the toilet.

Here is a quote from an article that deliberately distorts the facts in order to discourage people from buying organic foods.

Strong to the Finach – We Eat our Spinach!

"Nobody has talked much about Popeye in recent days - not since spinach grown in California, probably on an organic farm, has sickened more than 100 people in 19 states in an E. coli outbreak. In a recent Wall Street Journal commentary, Dr. Marc Siegel, an associate Professor at NYU School of Medicine, commented that it is unwise to automatically consider everything organically grown to be safe."

Source: Truth about Trade Technology

Reading further in this article, we see the not so subtle message that this website is promoting:

"Genetically modified goods specifically provide hope that farmers in the United States and abroad will be able to feed a growing world."

IJHC-WHR Observations

Beware of what you read in the popular press and on line. The conventional food industry, which relies heavily on chemical fertilizers, pesticides, hormones and antibiotics that can be dangerous to our health, wants to discourage people from eating organic foods.

Proper food handling is essential in the food industry - organic and conventional. E coli infections have been known to occur for many decades when there is a breakdown in sanitary food handling procedures. This is in no way a criticism of organic foods, but certainly a caution that the company involved needs to set stricter standards for handling its produce.