food, wtf [paging upton sinclair]

so ever since the pet food recall shit hit the fan, I have been glumly predicting that the tainted product will end up in the human food supply, and a month later, I am proven right.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/hsn/20070501/hl_hsn/fdamillionsofchickensfedcontaminatedpetfood
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/30/business/worldbusiness/30food.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/2007-04-30-chinese-imports-usat_N.htm
http://www.boston.com/business/globe/articles/2007/04/27/hogs_that_ate_melamine_not_fit_for_humans_fda_rules/

I especially liked this part of the NYT article on the subject:

In recent years, for instance, China’s food safety scandals have involved everything from fake baby milk formulas and soy sauce made from human hair to instances where cuttlefish were soaked in calligraphy ink to improve their color and eels were fed contraceptive pills to make them grow long and slim.


I am already scared of 80% of food...so, seriously, what is safe to eat now?

If something is certified organic, does that mean it definitely doesn't have the melamine-poisoned wheat gluten?

If I get something from local farms, is there guarantee that they didn't get ingredients from elsewhere that might contain this shit?

Free Trade and deregulation are awesome for the kidneys!