Avoid pistachios

First it was peanuts, now it's pistachios that are being recalled. This is Just Nuts... :duh2:

PhotonWrangler said:

This is Just Nuts... :duh2:

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...good one!!!


I think they taste terrible anyway...

Thanks for the heads up. I'll check dry storage when I get in this morning and pass this on to co-workers.

Found two cases of King Nut peanut butter on a shelf right after the last nut recall.

For the time being do not eat pistachio products but as for myself, I would not throw them out yet -- I'd wait to see what is really involved and if there will be refunds. The FDA is still working on a list of contaminated products and should have them out within a day or two (OK, maybe longer). At any rate, one place to check for info is this: Recalls, Market Withdrawals, and Safety Alerts .

Here's a source of some info. on food safety:

Safe Food Handling Fact Sheets

Recalls are a small portion of the causes of food borne illnesses. The site will tell you how to handle food, store food, etc. It will tell you if you should be worried about different colors in meats, how to properly defrost food, and many other things. Lots of information and easy to follow guidelines.

A lot of food poisoning and cases of "the stomach flu" are easy to avoid.

Wow. Thanks. With a nasty stomach flu hitting at least New England it'd be hard me as a layman to tell the difference of symptoms, so good to know to just avoid pistachios for the near term.

I eat those 2 for $6 Pistachios from WinnDixie very often. I'm addicted to

them. Their like crack! (Am I allowed to use that word?)

I don't think they're the same brand as the recall ones. :thinking:

I was halfway through a costco bag when I saw it on the news. Other than sore fingers I'm O.K.

O'Neille said:

I was halfway through a costco bag when I saw it on the news. Other than sore fingers I'm O.K.

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Lol.

Pistachio trivia: The reason pistachio shells used to be coated with red powder is because of how sweaty the workers were; pistachio picking is intense work usually done in hot conditions, which results in sweaty fingerprints on the shells of picked nuts. Covering the shell with a fine bright-colored powered covers such blemishes.

And now that the nuts are picked/removed by machinery, there's no need for the powder, which is why pistachios are now sold bare.

As of this afternoon, the FDA has listed some details (nothing so far on the Setton Farms web site). More to come no doubt. Refer to my earlier post (#4) for a link to the FDA recall info.

LOL

I was done eating a bag that i just bought that day, and BOOM the news came on.

Are they OK if you cook them?

Most people don't cook pistachios, but maybe. Not really sure about them specifically and if that would make them safe.

OK, forgive me but I work with food, so I'm gonna preach Food Safety for a little bit.

Salmonella is one of the top reasons to always use a meat thermometer -- get one and learn how to use it and what temps are required for what meats.

Just a few other things to remember are to:
- always wash your hand, especially after handling any raw meat
(I promise that I am not OCD, but most people do not wash their hands properly. Here's a link to a site that will tell you how and why. Clean hands ).
- never cross contaminate (Don't use a utensil, plate, etc. that has touched raw food for cooked food. Don't put raw meat in the refrigerator where it will be above cooked food in case the blood/juice drips, etc.)
- keep things clean and sanitized (They are not the same thing).
- learn about "the danger zone" (Many foods need to be kept below 40 degrees F. or above 140 degrees F. Cooked food left in the Danger Zone temps for as little as 2 hours should be discarded).

There are more and yes, they really are important. Want simple proof? I haven't had a "stomach bug" in more years than I can remember.

Why are we having so many food safety issues all of a sudden, here in the US? From bad spinach, nuts, pistachios and what have you, we didn't have these problems with near the same frequency for several decades or at least the four plus I've been around, until recently.

I think there are several factors -

1) As manufacturers consolidate and produce more output from fewer facilities, things can get fast and loose. There's pressure to move product and move it fast. This is what ultimately brought down Parnell's peanut factory.

2) Inadequate inspections. The FDA has admitted that they have nowhere near the number of inspectors needed to keep up with a regular inspection schedule. Read into this what you want, but at the end of the day there simply aren't enough boots on the ground to insure everyone's safety.

3) The pervasive 24-hour news cycle. These kinds of things have been happening ever since mankind has been handling food, but it's much more noticeable now (thank goodness) with the ubiquity of the news media and the internet.

I'm 21 and have a healthy immune system... 2 people with tummyaches is not going to keep me from eating pistachios....

If I was going to get salmonella, I'd get it from all the raw cookie dough and brownie batter I've eaten in my life. :nana:

nbp said:

I'm 21 and have a healthy immune system... 2 people with tummyaches is not going to keep me from eating pistachios....

If I was going to get salmonella, I'd get it from all the raw cookie dough and brownie batter I've eaten in my life. :nana:

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So you don't mind vomiting and diarrhea for several days at minimum? Cool, go for it. :thumbsup: While you're Googling "pushing your luck," take a minute to read this:

Mayo clinic -- Salmonella

It really is a lot more than a "tummy ache." Aside from it lasting up to two weeks, the blood in the stool, and possible liver problems, it can also get nasty. oo: People do die from this and did in the last outbreak. Then again, if it were me I might bother to check where the pistachios came from, and if they were suspect toss them out, and shoot, just wait a few weeks to see if it was safe to buy more. Oh my, did I forget to mention the long term effects, too?

But if you think that could be less fun than feeling like death for up to a couple of weeks, don't let me stop you. Please tell me you aren't like a lot of kids I know who say it can't happen to them... as they start puking on their shoes, right?

Do whatever you want, but please just stay away from old people, infants, and people who are very sick if you do get it -- it's spreadable and likely to kill them. 'Course your friends and girlfriend would love ya for spreading it to them.

That is more fun than just not eating pistachios you don't know for sure are safe (takes only a minute to be sure)? Eeewww.

Aw, jeez, I'm sorry for the rant, kid. I just see way too many people with your attitude who end up getting really sick and it ticks me off that people can just be so dumb. I guess avoidable barf just ain't my thing.

geepondy said:

Why are we having so many food safety issues all of a sudden, here in the US? From bad spinach, nuts, pistachios and what have you, we didn't have these problems with near the same frequency for several decades or at least the four plus I've been around, until recently.

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Part of it is that there are more inspections and more emphasis on checking (bad press, a few deaths, and a lawsuit or two maybe have something to do with that).

Also, people (well, SOME people, not all) realize that the "stomach flu" is by far most often really a case of food poisoning and that's easily avoidable. We are (again, most of us anyway) getting smarter in some ways after all.

My comment was made more tongue-in-cheek actually. Guess I should have used one of these at the end of my post.

I'd rather not have salmonella if I can help it. I don't have any pistachios in the house, and I am not going to to go buy some just to "push my luck".

I appreciate your concern for my health and well-being though :kiss:

PhotonWrangler said:

First it was peanuts, now it's pistachios that are being recalled. This is Just Nuts... :duh2:

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You just had to put the pun in there didn't you. :touche: Just try not to nuts with the puns will you. Thanks

I still don't understand how Kraft found that it was a pistachio in their

Trail Mix that caused the illness...

Who buys Kraft products anyways? Everything they slap their label on to

me is terrible. :tinfoil: