A new investigation by The Washington Post is raising concerns about the safety of fresh produce imported into the United States.
The report found the Food and Drug Administration has inspected only 7.6% of foreign facilities that supply fresh produce to the U.S. since 2009.
The newspaper’s analysis of FDA inspection and import data found the agency inspected only about 2% of facilities in Mexico that ship produce to the United States.
Mexico is the country’s largest produce exporter, sending more than $16 billion worth of products to the U.S., including berries, peppers, and lettuce.
Fresh produce can be especially vulnerable to foodborne illnesses because contamination can happen at any point during production.
“Contamination can occur when this produce is being produced at any point in the production cycle,” Dr. Taylor said.
The findings come after a summer marked by foodborne illness outbreaks and recalls involving Cyclospora, Salmonella and E. coli.
Health officials linked a Cyclospora outbreak to lettuce from Mexico. The outbreak reportedly sickened more than 20,000 people nationwide and resulted in two deaths.
One patient described experiencing severe symptoms.
“I started having really bad stomach pain and really bad nausea,” the patient said.
Food safety experts have previously raised concerns about the FDA’s ability to inspect foreign facilities, citing limited resources.
Barbara Kowalcyk, director of the Institute for Food Safety and Nutrition Security at George Washington University, said the agency does not have the resources to visit every facility.
An FDA official told The Washington Post that inspection numbers do not tell the whole story, adding that the agency uses other measures to monitor imported produce.
Health experts recommend checking for food recalls and washing fresh fruits and vegetables before eating them.
