Does anyone else get a sudden craving for a food item once you hear it has been recalled? Maybe it is because I want something I can’t have.
While I was drinking my morning coffee the other day, I was listening to the news and heard that various brands of eggs were being recalled due to possible salmonella contamination.
I am usually very happy to have my own backyard chickens that lay eggs. However, their egg production has slowed greatly this winter and I’ve had to purchase eggs at the store instead. I quickly checked to see if the ones I bought were affected by the recall.
According to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), this recall was triggered by test results. Brands affected included Compliments, Foremost, Golden Valley Eggs, IGA, Western Family and more. The ones affected include expiry dates of Feb. 16, Feb. 22 and March 1. So far, no one has reported any illness after consuming these eggs.
While the human gut contains a lot of different kinds of bacteria, salmonella is not one of them. The bacteria invades and destroys the cells that line your intestines.
Salmonella can come from eating dairy or meat products from an infected animal or even from scooping up your dog’s poop. It can also be found on produce that has been contaminated.
The most common symptoms are diarrhea, fever and stomach pain. Some people get it and don’t even know. It usually goes away on its own.
Salmonella is one of the most common forms of food poisoning but that doesn’t make it a very fun club to be part of. Each year, more than 80,000 Canadians get sick with salmonella.
Luckily the eggs I had to purchase last week were not affected, but if yours were, either throw them out or bring them back to the store where you bought them.
It is better to be safe than sorry.
There are enough sicknesses currently circulating in the community, we don’t need to add more.
Between the price of eggs going up and now the salmonella scare, I am happy to have my hens. Sometimes when I am thawing out their frozen water or slipping on the ice toward their coop or cleaning up their poop, I need a reminder of how grateful I am for them.
This now has me also thinking of and planning my veggie garden. The more control I have over what I feed my family the better.
Maybe I should also jump on the make-my-own-bread train too. Sourdough is trendy right now and maybe for good reason.