Fresh spinach "jitters"

[Homemadechef]

Anyone other than I a little reluctant to buy fresh spinach? I kept eyeing it yesterday in the grocery store and it looked soooo fresh and good. Would love to put it in a nice salad but when I reach for it, I pause, get a funny feeling and move on. Anyone else?

[jilliniowa]

No jitters here. I've gone through about 4 bags a week since it reappeared on the shelves. I must confess, we usually eat it cooked, but I have also been tossing it in salads. My kids won't touch the frozen stuff, and they need their vitamins!

[JellyBean22]

I used it for the first time this weekend....since the big scare.

[lindrusso]

No jitters here.

If it makes you feel any better, I read that the e. coli outbreak was believed to have been caused by wild pigs that got through fencing on the spinach farm.

Their irrigation systems and other equipment were clean. Sounds like a freak accident.

Don't be afraid - go ahead and eat your spinach.

[lindrusso]

Their irrigation systems and other equipment were clean.

Whoops - can't find verification of that, but that's what I thought I read.........

But they are looking at feral or wild pigs as the possible source.......

[veschke]

I bought some last week... I noticed that the bag said "Product of Canada" very prominently. It went bad in about two days, too.

[donleyk]

Nope. I was thrilled to see it on the salad bar at work yesterday.

[GingerPow]

Just used 2 bags of fresh spinach at dinner the other night...Ack! just kidding.
I noticed that many of the bags are labeled 'grown in Canada,' which is what I purchased. No worries.

[emily]

Spinach!?

Deborah Schot, a reporter from the L.A. Times, called me to ask for an opinion about the e coli outbreak in prepackaged fresh spinach that has killed one person and sickened hundreds more. And yes, I have an opinion. I think the F.D.A. employee that I heard on the radio yesterday urging people to play it safe and not eat fresh spinach is ignorant. Although the victims got sick by eating spinach from a sealed bag it’s wrong to seize on spinach as the culprit in the controversy; it makes more sense to look at the processing and handling of pre-packaged greens in general. Put another way, it’s the harvest procedures that were followed, the pre-washed claim made for the greens, and the bagged environment the greens are in that are the relevant issues, not the specific variety of leafy greens that were actually contaminated at some point during the harvest and post harvest handling. By fingering any spinach as suspicious, even bunched fresh spinach, the F.D.A. isn’t educating anyone, or solving the problem. They’re just spreading fear on a national scale.

The whole article and follow-up article

Emily

[summer02]

FWIW...I was reading this morning about the on-going salmonella outbreak:

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/h...almonella.html

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/n...ationworld-hed

I worry less about bagged spinach and more about fruits/ veggies that I eat at restaurants since you never know how well they were cleaned before they ended up on your plate

[Canice]

Nope, I never stopped eating spinach.

[chipotle]

I buy fresh spinach every time I see it at the store. I eat most of it raw in salads and I'm still alive to tell the tale. I was really bummed not being able to buy it for so long as I just adore it in salads.

[jellyben]

I bought my first bag today-so excited!! I never craved spinach as much as when I couldn't have any!

Last week I had some at a salad bar, despite my kids' protests that 'that stuff will kill you!!' A few days later I had some heartburn and my son quickly blamed the spinach. He has sworn off spinach for life, like he used to eat just so much-NOT!

[lindrusso]

Mmmmmmmm...we had spinach in our soup tonight.....

[Spydee]

I just love the fact that fresh baby spinach is back!!!! While I never did stop eating fresh spinach, I can certainly say that I prefer baby spinach for salad.

It is quite easy for me to say that spinach is not even close to the top of my food jitters list.

[HealthyinMN]

Nope, I never stopped eating spinach.

I'm with Canice here - didn't feel the need to stop and was very glad when I saw it in the store again!

[ADM]

my son quickly blamed the spinach. He has sworn off spinach for life, like he used to eat just so much-NOT!

LOL My 2 DS swore off Cherrios for life because of the Urban Legend that it had rat hairs.

[memartha]

I just got fresh spinach at the store over the weekend. It was not packaged.

When the e-coli scare was announced, DH turned to the kids and said, "See kids, I told you, spinach is very bad for you. You should NEVER eat it." This is what I'm up against.

[Homemadechef]

Reading all these "common sense" replies has made me feel heaps better. Spinach is on the coming week's menu! Thanks everyone!

[KristinK]

I noticed that many of the bags are labeled 'grown in Canada,' which is what I purchased. No worries.

I was excited when I saw it again in the grocery store, but when I saw the Canada stickers, I got paranoid for a minute, thinking it was a warning! Then I came to my senses and remembered Canada was safe.

Besides, I love spinach too much to have waited any longer to have it again.

[Kristal]

I bought some a few days ago and used it in my pasta dish last night. I'm feeling fine today, and I'm very glad it's back on the shelves.