In cooperation with United Fresh Produce Association and The National Restaurant Association, IAFP has planned a Rapid Response Symposium on “Fresh Leafy Greens – Are They Safe Enough?”.

A recent widespread foodborne outbreak linked to fresh bagged spinach has called into question the safety of fresh leafy greens.

Amidst a growing obesity epidemic in North America, many public health professionals are encouraging consumers to eat more fruits and vegetables, including fresh leafy greens. However, at the same time, fresh produce is being increasingly implicated as a vehicle of foodborne disease. The recent outbreak linked to fresh bagged spinach illustrates this point. Based on early epidemiological evidence of an evolving outbreak, consumers were advised to not eat fresh spinach or products containing fresh spinach.

Since 1995, there have been 19 reported outbreaks of foodborne illness in the United States caused by E. coli  O157:H7 for which lettuce or leafy greens were implicated as the outbreak vehicle. Given these findings, are fresh leafy greens safe enough? Are current measures adequate to ensure their safety? And what are the latest risk management strategies that can be taken to further reduce their risk?

The IAFP Rapid Response Symposium, "Fresh Leafy Greens - Are They Safe Enough?" will bring leading experts and stakeholders together on this topic for a science-based discussion on the latest findings from the recent spinach outbreak, lessons learned, and current strategies to improve the safety of these types of products.

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We want to recognize the following sponsors, who have financially helped to make this symposium possible.

bioMerieux

DuPont Qualicon

Ecolab

National Restaurant Association

National Restaurant Association
Educational Foundation

Silliker

Technical Committee on Food Microbiology-International Life Sciences Institute,
North American Branch