Guest Commentary: ‘The solution’ won’t make food supply (or consumers) safer

By FRANK OAKES, Naples, organic farmer Over the last three months, 1,220 Americans have been “sickened,” possibly by consuming fresh tomatoes. Or perhaps it was not the tomatoes. It may have been jalapenos. Or maybe it was neither. It could be fresh cilantro. This amounts to 94 people per week. One elderly cancer patient’s death “may be” connected. According to an article published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, Barbara Starfield of Johns Hopkins said 1,750 people have died from receiving the wrong medications in hospitals during the same period. She goes on to point out during that same time 3,000 have died during or as a result of non-necessary operations; 20,000 have died from infections acquired in hospitals; and 26,500 have died from negative effects from receiving the correct medications! The... [read full story]