FERN’s Friday Feed: America’s onion problem
Welcome to FERN’s Friday Feed (#FFF), where we share the stories from this week that made us stop and think.
Why are onions suddenly making people sick?
The Atlantic
“Certain foods are more likely than others to wreak havoc on your stomach. Cucumbers have carried Salmonella, peaches have been contaminated with Listeria, and eating a salad feels a bit like Russian roulette,” writes Nicholas Florko. “By comparison, onions have an almost-divine air. They are blessed with natural properties that are thought to prevent foodborne illnesses, and on top of that, they undergo a curing process that acts as a fail-safe … Onions haven’t been thought of as a ‘significant hazard,’ Susan Mayne, the former head of food safety at the FDA, told me. Not anymore. Late last month, McDonald’s briefly stopped selling its Quarter Pounders in certain states after at least 90 people who ate them fell sick with E. coli. Last Wednesday, the CDC announced the likely culprit: slivered onions. This is the fourth time onions have caused a multistate foodborne outbreak since 2020, in total sickening at least 2,337 people, according to available data … All of a sudden, the United States seems to have an onion problem—and no one knows for sure what is causing it.”
Climate change and anti-immigrant hate are colliding
ProPublica
“[Patrick] Crusius’ manifesto was striking because he considered the crushing squeeze of environmental degradation — the very changes that would be amplified by climate change — on communities, but from the opposite perspective. His fear that white Americans were being replaced by an army of invaders who must be repelled seemed to me symptoms of a reactive white supremacy, exacerbated by worries over scarcity brought on by the radically changing environment,” writes Abrahm Lustgarten. “But there was something even more significant: For a generation, conservatives — not just the far right, which Crusius appeared to identify with — had propelled the notion that climate change was a hoax fabricated so the government could impose new restrictions on the economy and society. Yet Crusius hadn’t denied climate change at all. Instead, he seemed to claim its impacts were themselves arguments justifying his violence. I wanted to understand why and, by extension, what it said about the rise and threat of American extremism as the world warms.”
Why hunger plagues the U.S. military
Bloomberg Government
“In a nation that spends more on its military than any other, more than a quarter of active-duty troops meet the US Department of Agriculture’s definition for food insecure, according to an April report by the department’s economic research arm,” write Skye Witley and Roxana Tiron. “That’s nearly two-and-a-half times the rate for the US civilian population. Congress has known of the problem for a decade. Advocates against hunger say that with annual defense authorization legislation and renewal of the five-year farm bill coming up at the same time, in the lame-duck session that begins Nov. 12, lawmakers have a rare opportunity to address simultaneously two of the biggest causes: low pay for junior enlisted personnel, and eligibility rules for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps.”
The taste of EVOO is tied to the Industrial Revolution
Aeon
“For many people, cryptocurrencies exist as a quintessential artifact of the digital age. A financial abstraction. A human contrivance. It’s hard to think of anything less organic, less biological, less living than a Bitcoin,” writes Luke Carneal. “A garden-fresh tomato, on the other hand, is a basic unit of the natural world. Its warm red flesh — sometimes purple, sometimes yellow-green — feels self-evidently full of life in your palm. We all know what a tomato is. But for some Bitcoin miners, this seeming incompatibility between agriculture and the world of crypto is actually an opportunity for symbiosis.”
U.S. convenience stores try to up their food game
The Associated Press
“Americans who think of petrified hot dogs, frozen burritos and salty snacks when they imagine getting food at a gas station or truck stop may be pleasantly surprised during their next road trip: U.S. convenience stores are offering them more and better — though not necessarily healthier — choices. From 7-Eleven to regional chains like QuikTrip, the operators of c-stores, as they’re known in the trade, are looking overseas for grab-and-go inspiration,” writes Anne D’Innocenzio, “adding sit-down seating at some locations, expanding their coffee menus to rival Starbucks and experimenting with made-to-order meals for busy families. The moves are happening as convenience stores seek ways to offset slowing sales of cigarettes, maps and soft drinks. By tempting customers’ palates with fresh deli sandwiches and build-your-own burgers, the humble food marts want to become an alternative to fast-food restaurants for busy Americans who crave easy, interesting and less expensive eating options.”