Anonymous - Comment

Mississippi Market is a consumer-owned co-op with nearly 30 years of experience in the natural foods industry. Our members, shoppers, and staff value truly sustainable foods, considering everything from how the farm workers were treated to how the soil was prepared for planting. The proposed amendment, Docket #FDA-1999-F-2405, provides a quick fix for killing bacteria in lettuce and spinach but does nothing to address the real problems facing our food supply. Irradiating fresh greens is merely applying a band-aid to the problems in our food supply. Instead the focus should be on getting large scale agriculture under control and reducing our reliance on unsustainable products like petroleum based pesticides and fertilizers. By encouraging smaller farms with smaller distribution chains, we reduce the risk of crop contamination and have a traceable food supply. We enourage the FDA to avoid this risky, nutrient-leaching radiation treatment on our leafy greens. Instead, let us look to the source of contamination.