Cantaloupe. (Creative Commons)

“To reduce the risk of infection, the Food and Drug Administration warns consumers to keep their refrigerators set at or beneath 40 degrees Fahrenheit, clean their fridges often, and wash fresh produce.”

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And it continues. Interesting considering cantaloupes only have a shelf life of 2 weeks. If more people grow ill past this point, is it possible that ‘the source’ may not be the source of the listeria?

- Elena, Neon Tommy

@ClosetHippie

“According to the AP, no list has been provided of retailers who may have sold the fruit. Recalled cantaloupes are labeled “Colorado Grown,” “Distributed by Frontera Produce,” “Jensenfarms.com” or “Sweet Rocky Fords.” Not all recalled fruit has a sticker.”

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“The House has just cleared the new agriculture appropriations for the 2012 fiscal year. The new budget will include some rather significant cuts to federal food safety programs, according to Food Safety News.

The FDA will take on the biggest cuts including a $285 million cut from the budget. Specifically, an 11.5 percent cut in discretionary funding as well as an $87 million cut to food safety programs. The USDA will take less dramatic hits including a $35 million overall cut and a 4 percent cut from meat, poultry, and egg inspection, according to the story.

This comes on the heels of the widespread e. coli tragedy in Europe, considered one of the worst in history. Food safety reformers are calling this a huge misstep and fear an equally devastating outbreak in the U.S. with such huge cuts to overall food safety programs….”

Investigation: Contaminated imports enter the country, lags in recall, incomplete information result of inattentiveness, failure to comply with own rules, protocols.