Fresh Express Donates $2 Million To Fund E. Coli Prevention Research

Dr. Osterholm leads panel looking into E. coli produce outbreaks

After last year's public relations nightmare following the media frenzy that ensued when the E. coli virus contaminated bagged spinach products in California killing over 100 and making thousands more sick all across the United States, the nation's top manufacturer of ready-to-eat salads has stepped forward to take the lead in trying to prevent something like this from happening again.

Fresh Express, a subsidiary of Chiquita Brands International, Inc., is the #1 seller of bagged salads in North America with more than 20 million customers eating their healthy spinach and other green leafy vegetable products every single week. Concerned about the long-term fallout of the spinach crisis in the Fall of 2006, they have made a rather unique and unprecedented move: a $2 million donation towards an independent scientific advisory panel looking into preventing the dangerous spread of E. coli to future spinach and other produce crops.

This is a bold initiative by Fresh Express considering none of their products have ever been shown to cause any food borne illnesses in company history. Even still, they are doing everything they can to regain the public's trust in the safety of their products, something their Food Safety Chief Jim Lugg assured me recently when I interviewed him about this subject.

The panel consists of six nationally recognized food safety experts from both the state and federal government levels who have been looking into the E. coli problems on a voluntary basis since May 2006 to determine why the contamination is happening. Their research is considered vital to the prevention of future outbreaks.

Chaired by Dr. Michael T. Osterholm from the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, the panel also includes Dr. Jeff Farrar from the California Department of Health Services, Dr. Bob Buchanan from the FDA, Dr. Robert Tauxe from the U.S. Centers For Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Bob Gravani from Cornell University, and Dr. Craig Hedberg also from The University of Minnesota.

This group of food safety experts has already uncovered five of the most critical research priorities for them to examine in the coming months, according to Dr. Osterholm.

"We systematically used our individual areas of expertise to scrutinize the entire supply chain and ultimately uncover the areas where we collectively agreed more research was necessary," Dr. Osterholm explained.

These priorities include but are not limited to:

1. Determining how E. coli is internalized in lettuce or spinach.
2. Identifying ways to E. coli from spreading to green vegetables.
3. Conducting crop studies to assess the severity of the contamination.
4. Looking into how E. coli can multiply during the harvesting of produce.
5. Finding out if E. coli is able to survive the composting processes.

These and many other kinds of rigorous research initiatives are being conducted by Dr. Osterholm and his team this year to help the fresh-cut produce industry deal with this very serious and potentially costly problem. The results of their research findings will be made public to help educate the entire fresh produce industry as well as consumers about why this is happening.

No date has been set for the release of the panel's conclusions, but it is likely expected sometime in late 2007. The availability of the $2 million donated by Fresh Express is immediate and the panel has free reign to use the money as they see fit to conduct the research process in as independent and thorough manner as possible.

In the meantime, Fresh Express president Tanios Viviani says he is proud to be on the frontlines of the research looking into the E. coli problem which has the potential to completely destroy the industry completely should another outbreak hit as hard as it did in late 2006.

"At Fresh Express, food safety has been and will always be our No. 1 priority in every phase of our operations," he said. "We have long been dedicated to food-safety innovation, and this research effort is part of that ongoing commitment. We are grateful to these leading experts for their generous contribution of time and expertise to guide this initiative."

Viviani added that he is confident the panel will offer plenty of "new knowledge, practices, and technologies that the entire fresh-cut produce industry can use to provide consumers with ready-to-eat produce that is consistently safe and healthy."

The "Livin' La Vida Low-Carb" blog will continue to follow this story in the coming months and report to you any further developments that you need to be aware of, especially when the panel's findings are released.

Lugg: Constantly Improving Spinach Safety Is First Priority For Fresh Express

Find out why Fresh Express spinach is okay to eat

One of the biggest health news stories of 2006 was the E-coli outbreak in spinach in September. Since spinach and other green leafy vegetables are an important part of a healthy low-carb lifestyle, I had some serious concerns about the long-term fallout from this event.

America's top ready-to-eat bagged salad company Fresh Express has attempted to regain the public's trust in the safety of their products. To that end, I recently conducted an interview with their food safety chief Jim Lugg to ask him the hard questions that I'm sure are still lingering in the back of your mind about buying spinach.

I appreciated his candor about the E. coli scare and hope you feel as confident as I do that spinach is indeed safe to eat again (I've already purchased about a dozen bags of spinach in just the past month!). ENJOY this interview and please leave your comments about it at the end of this post.

1. I'm pleased to welcome to the "Livin' La Vida Low-Carb" blog the food safety chief for ready-to-eat salad company Fresh Express and 43-year industry veteran Jim Lugg. It's been quite a year for you and your company dealing with the challenges of the last few months of 2006. When the E. coli news started spreading across the media, what was your initial reaction to it?

Our reaction was one of concern: One food borne illness related to the leafy green category is one too many. We were fairly certain we were not involved in the outbreak due to our rigorous food safety programs that actually begin right in the field and carry through all the way to delivery of our products. Thanks to the comprehensive scope of these programs and our day-in and day-out focus on food safety, in our entire 18-year history, Fresh Express has never been epidemiologically linked to a food-borne illness outbreak.

2. Do you think the news media tended to over sensationalize the story in order to attract viewers and readers or was the massive coverage by them warranted?

I think the media is on very, very tight deadlines and don't always take the time to educate themselves about a situation thoroughly enough to write articles that tell the whole story. As a result, they can send incomplete or inaccurate signals to consumers.

3. This tragic event has undoubtedly taken its toll on your company's profits despite the fact that your company had nothing at all to do with the E. coli strand that sickened so many across the nation. What has Fresh Express done to reassure its customers that their products are and have always been safe to eat?

We have stepped up our communications efforts to describe our exceptional food safety programs to help them better understand how detailed and effective our food safety practices are at every stage of the salad-making process.

4. Unfortunately, no matter how much you tell some people about what you are doing to protect their health, you will still have those who want some sort of an incentive to come back. What is Fresh Express doing to woo their skeptical customers into buying leafy greens again?

Our research shows that the price of packaged salads is not the issue among those who have stopped purchasing. So no amount of couponing will influence this group. The main thing we are doing to woo these customers back is to continually improve our food safety program. We've spent millions over the past 10 years to make Fresh Express a leader in food safety and this will continue aggressively.

5. We're getting mixed message from FDA Food Safety spokesman Dr. David Acheson who believes there are long-term food safety issues regarding foodborne illness associated with eating spinach and other green leafy that need to be addressed. What is he referring to?

He is simply referring to the disparity within the industry--that unfortunately, most companies do not have the same rigorous approach to food safety that we do. All companies should adopt comprehensive, end-to-end programs like Fresh Express' stringent focus on PREVENTION. Until they do, consumers need to be smart about what brands they purchase.

6. What steps are being taken by Fresh Express to prevent an outbreak of E. coli or other such virus from showing up among your crops?

Fresh Express developed and implemented the first comprehensive and multi-step Raw Product Food Safety and Quality Program within the industry. That program is even stronger today and is designed to prevent problems through very specific practices in the fields where the lettuce and spinach is grown and harvested. These practices range from testing irrigation water and buffering the fields against wildlife or livestock to strict worker sanitation requirements.

7. Is there anything a consumer should do with the green leafy vegetables they buy from Fresh Express to protect themselves against possible illness? Do they need to wash the vegetables again even if the bag says they are prewashed?

Our salads and spinach are thoroughly washed and ready to eat. All consumers need to do is pop open the bag and enjoy! If consumers do decide to rewash the salads--which we do not recommend--they need to be sure they are using careful food preparation practices in their kitchens. Cleanliness is extremely important and they should especially watch out not to cross-contaminate the salads with other food items such as raw chicken or even other unwashed veggies that might have been in or near the sink or cutting board or so on.

8. The sad part of this E. coli story is that spinach is an excellent part of just about every healthy lifestyle whether it is vegetarian, low-fat or low-carb. What is Fresh Express doing to help educate people about why they should be eating more spinach and are there any practical ways to encourage consumers who may have never eaten it previously to try it now?

We're doing quite a bit. We're using in-store opportunities to communicate directly with consumers. We are also reaching out to the media and have already had various stories and ads appear, with more planned.

9. Nothing beats a big plate of spinach leaves topped with a salmon steak or grilled chicken strips and yet you can't find this kind of meal at most American restaurants. In fact, Applebee's recently pulled all of the spinach from their popular new menu in response to the fear generated by the E. coli event. Is Fresh Express prepared to help reassure these restaurants that their product should be served with pride to their diners?

Our industry associations are working actively with the organizations who represent white tablecloth, themed, casual dine-in and quick serve restaurants.

10. THANK YOU again for sharing just a little bit of time with my readers today, Mr. Lugg! I'm sure this experience has provided a rollercoaster ride of emotions for the leaders of your company as you attempt to deal with a crisis that could very well pop up again in the future. What are you doing right now to prepare for the "next time" because there will inevitably be one at some point? Can Fresh Express survive another E. coli outbreak even if your crops are never compromised?

We stand behind our food safety programs and our products and we've been pleasantly surprised to learn that our loyal consumers are standing behind us as well!

Please visit FreshExpress.com for more information about the company.

By the way, you may want to take advantage of their New Year New You promotion where you can get a FREE PEDOMETER with the purchase of any two Fresh Express products. All you need to do is fill out this mail-in form and you'll have your pedometer in 6-8 weeks.

Your purchase must be made by March 31, 2007 to qualify and postmarked no later than April 7, 2007 to take advantage of this offer. I've already sent my first form off in the mail for my FREE PEDOMETER! In fact, I may do it again with my next purchases, too. Hey, what can I say, I LOVE spinach!

Any comments or questions about the interview?

Fresh Express Attempts To Regain Consumer Trust After Tainted Spinach Debacle

After the E. coli spinach scare, can Fresh Express make a comeback?

I don't know about you, but I am so glad to FINALLY see bagged spinach back on grocery store shelves again following the recent E. coli outbreak in California in September. At the time, I blogged about what the long-term fallout of this crisis would be and whether people would start purchasing spinach again.

Here's what I wrote at the time about what the spinach companies face:

"The spinach and green leafy vegetable industry will be fighting an uphill public relations battle in the coming months. They need to somehow reassure consumers that it really is safe to begin eating their products again. A national marketing campaign on television and radio may be needed to get people to begin purchasing these products again."

Well, I was prophetic with what I wrote because that's exactly what the leading packaged salad company Fresh Express is doing. Just before Thanksgiving, I received a personalized e-mail from a representative at Fresh Express who said they read my blog and appreciate my support for consuming fresh salad greens as part of my healthy low-carb lifestyle.

They said they read about my concerns regarding the safety of their product following the E. coli incident and assured me they take every precaution to ensure the highest safety and quality of their products. Fresh Express referenced this USA Today article that explains the stringent standards that Fresh Express demands of the crop growers which make them the food safety leader in their industry. It's an educational read, so check it out!


Fresh Express Food Safety Chief Jim Lugg inspects the crops

There will be a bloggers-only press conference taking place in a couple of weeks with Jim Lugg, food safety chief for Fresh Express to answer any questions or concerns about the consumer safety of the Fresh Express products. If you have any specific concerns or questions that you would like for me to ask Mr. Lugg, then please e-mail them to me at livinlowcarbman@charter.net. I will certainly report back to you any relevant information that comes out of that.

Then, in today's mail I received the weekly newspaper sales flyer for my favorite local grocery store and noticed they were featuring the Fresh Express product line in a special front-page fold on the right-hand side of the paper. All of the Fresh Express bagged salads, including Baby Spinach, Spring Mix, Green & Crisp and Hearts Of Romaine, among others were featured on sale for BUY ONE GET ONE FREE! Sweet! I LOVE a BOGO sale! :)

At the bottom of the pictures of the Fresh Express ad read this:

"OUR PROMISE TO YOU: When you buy Fresh Express ready-to-eat salads, you have our pledge to provide the absolute freshest, safest, and highest quality salads and greens available. FOOD SAFETY, OUR NUMBER 1 PRIORITY."

I personally started buying spinach again about two weeks ago. This is a product that people who are livin' la vida low-carb should be eating as part of their healthy lifestyle because it is chock full of some essential nutrients that your body can use. Nothing beats a big plate of spinach leaves with some fresh grilled chicken, cheese, sunflower seeds, and Ranch dressing. I could eat that at every meal! :)

How about you? Have you started eating spinach again yet? I think the public panic has now passed and it's probably time we start supporting companies like Fresh Express who are doing everything they can to reassure and protect their customers from harm. The E. coli issue will unfortunately keep some people away from spinach for good, but that's an unreasonable reaction since the source of the problem has been identified and taken care of. It's time to come back to spinach again.

In fact, here's an incentive for you to go buy a bag of spinach this week:


Click on the image above to print the 55 cent coupon

Go ahead, try a bag! Even if you have never purchased bagged spinach before, give it a whirl. You may find like I did that you enjoy eating it more than you think. And it's so incredibly healthy for you, too! EAT UP, low-carbers!