Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
The Economic Impact of Produce Outbreaks
When there is a produce-associated outbreak, it affects all produce consumption. Even
when outbreaks occur in areas far from where they live, consumers will avoid the
consumption of the produce item involved in the outbreak. In fact, they often reduce
their consumption of
all
fresh produce. In 1996, a large national outbreak involving
Cyclospora cayetanensis
-contaminated imported raspberries resulted in the straw-
berry industry losing an estimated $50 million after mistakenly being identifi ed as the
source of the pathogen early in the investigation (Bihn and Gravani 2006). In 2006,
due to the large national outbreak of
E. coli
O157:H7 - contaminated packaged spinach,
the spinach industry lost an estimated $75 million.
U.S. sales of packaged spinach were off 53% for the 16-week period after that
outbreak, which began in August-September 2006. In March 2007, sales were still
down 14% versus before the outbreak. Sales of all packaged salads (not containing
spinach) were down 14% in the 16-week period after the outbreak and were still down
about 1% in March 2007 (Pool 2007). The recent multistate
Salmonella
St. Paul out-
break that sickened over 1,284 people in 43 states in 2007, and was initially thought
to be associated with Roma and Red Round tomatoes, but was later traced to jalapeno/
serrano peppers, cost the tomato industry an estimated $100 million. These are some
of the many examples indicating how the produce industry experiences a considerable
economic impact and a loss of reputation and consumer trust when produce-associated
outbreaks occur. Additional detailed information about the economic impact of
produce outbreaks is contained in chapter 22.
The Development and Implementation of Good Agricultural
Practices (GAPs)
Produce poses special challenges because of the overall complexity of the industry,
the variety of fruits and vegetables grown, the multitude of production conditions and
strategies in different parts of the country, including soil types, water sources, irriga-
tion methods, feral animals, proximity to domestic animal operations, harvest tech-
niques, equipment, transportation, water use, packing, distribution, and market outlets.
Some commodities have natural characteristics that make them more susceptible to
microbial contamination and have been implicated in more outbreaks than some others
(Bihn and Gravani 2006). Since each farming operation is unique, growers need to
carefully evaluate every phase of their operation and develop a specifi c food safety
plan (program) that addresses the hazards and risks that are present (Bihn and Gravani
2006). In 1998, the FDA released the
Guide to Minimize Microbial Food Safety
Hazards for Fresh Fruits and Vegetables
(FDA, USDA, and CDC 1998). The
Guide
outlines a set of production practices called good agricultural practices (GAPs) and
intervention strategies that can be implemented on farms in the production of fresh
produce. GAPs are analogous to the good manufacturing practices (GMPs) used in
the food-processing industry, but address agricultural activities designed to reduce
microbial hazards and risks. Simply stated, GAPs are the basic environmental and
operational conditions necessary for the production of safe and wholesome fresh fruits
and vegetables. GAPs can also be thought of as any operational or management prac-
tice that reduces microbial hazards in the growing, harvesting, sorting, packing, and
