Incidents of contaminated produce seem to occur with almost predictable frequency, including the recent one that involved carrots.

I remember one such problem some time ago, maybe 10 years back, that had involved leafy greens (maybe spinach) from the Salinas area. For that one, I recall that it was believed the contamination came from fecal matter of wild pigs that were known to go through the fields.

I've never seen anything that made it clear for any or all of these incidents if the contaminants are made safe by cooking, or by washing for things eaten raw, or what? Sprouts of various kinds also seem to have recurring problems.

I enjoy sprouts but we've stopped buying them. I do eat them when having Vietnamese pho in a restaurant and don't give it much thought.

Please share any authoritative info you come upon.

I was hoping you and other science oriented people would respond.

A good part of the cooking I do is Chinese or Southeast Asian. I have been following beansprouts and E. coli for many years, but have not lwys been able to stay atop of things nor keep track of my sabed files. (Too many interests, projects and failed equipment.)

However, several times I have come across articles that state or suggest that a part of the problem goes beyond the hygeine and techniques of those who produce (mung) beansprouts and that the pathogen E. coli (#———) can become a part of the bean/seed. I am perhaps not using the correct phrasing.

I would like to use/eat more bean sprouts, but I sure do no want to get ill with a nasty variety of E. coli.

If and when I find rich information, I will Fair Use post it because it is an important public health concern.

Funny aside. Years ago when perusing the web for Mung Bean information, I happened across this absolutely jaw dropping You Tube video of some ”Home” producer of beansprouts (Chinatown) for restaurants.

The video setting appeared to be some modest and close quarters apartment set up.

The home worker was shown wkth her bare feet in a large tub of mung bean sprouts and water — jostling the sprouts to dislodge the husks and so on.

Most mung bean sprouts are consumed raw or slightly cooked so that they keep their crunch. Because the sprouts themselves are mostly water, and a lot of water is used to process them, the resulting sprouts and their wholesomeness is very dependent on the water quality and hygiene of the location, workers and process. A home bathtub may be very efficient for washing and draining sprouts, but would be questionable in terms of acceptable food hygiene.

PS excuse typos, please

Thanks, Annie.

This is a great question to consider.

I, too, am skeptical of bean sprouts and have quit buying them. They just seem to possibly not be very clean.being that they are so wet,

I used to grow my own, many years ago. I think I will start doing that again.

I like to buy the mixed sprouting seeds as well as mung beans.

I am putting them on my shopping list for the next co op shopping.

I don't know how different this is from the USDA article; it sure makes them suspect:

Clemson University fact sheet

Risk tolerance levels vary from person to person. Sometimes circumstances present a necessity or good reason to accept a risk, sometimes not.

For me, there's no compelling desire or need to eat sprouts. With this cautionary info at hand, I think I'll stop throwing them into pho . An alternative to provide crunch and an earthy flavor is jicama. Can't get enough of that in salads, a delicious addition.

I keep intending to try jicama, but forget. That sounds like an interesting alternative.

I may still consume healthy looking sprouts and wash them well. In a lot of recipes they get heated a bit, maybe this will help. I think mung bean sprouts were bought yesterday to put in hot ramen soup.