Just when you thought it was safe to eat greens again, a new threat was unleashed in the vegetable world.
Campus-wide apathy and lack of knowledge has kept the story from becoming a major concern among students.
Freshman Jay Foley, for example, said he “didn’t hear anything about any kind of lettuce contamination. But if that’s true, then it’s really bad.”
According to a Mediline Plus online article, Foxy Lettuce issued a recall on bagged lettuce after discovering it was infected with E. coli 0157. The recall was voluntary and the bacteria on the lettuce could be a harmless variety. Dr. David Acheson, chief medical officer of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, assured worried consumers that “there are many, many different kinds of E. coli. Some are harmful to humans and some are not.”
Chris Bosze, Sodexho’s resident dining manager, is confident that the lettuce used in the Barone Campus Center is safe from E. coli contamination.
“The process which Sodexho uses to approve its vendors is above even the government’s standards,” he said.
Despite reassurances from those in charge of food safety at Fairfield, students have qualms about filling up at the salad bar after being made aware of the risks.
“[I’m] worried about the lettuce,” said Courtney Carmody ’09, who said she didn’t know if she would eat lettuce if the E. coli contamination rumor is true.
Josh Kenney ’09, however, is not concerned.
“Yeah, I heard there could be some contamination, but I’m not so worried. It’s not devastating to people of my age group,” he said.
Bosze reminded students that he has done his best to keep them safe.
“There is no E. coli in our lettuce. Foxy did a voluntary recall; we only use Dole,” he said. “Our food safety standards are extremely rigorous. Students shouldn’t worry.”
Leave a Reply