"¡NO AJO!"
Posted on 06/20/2007 9:35:15 AM PDT by 3AngelaD
...Most of us buy garlic at a supermarket. We don't know what kind it is, how fresh it is or where it's grown. But there's a good chance it comes from China, which produces 75 percent of the world's supply...
Garlic is the United States' biggest fresh-vegetable import from China, which sent us 138 million pounds of it worth more than $70 million last year. We also get small amounts from Mexico, Argentina and about 15 other countries. We eat a lot of garlic -- about three pounds per person a year.
Although most of our fresh garlic comes from halfway around the world, it's cheaper than garlic grown in California...
Fresh garlic isn't the only form of the vegetable causing concern. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Foreign Agricultural Service says dehydrated Chinese garlic imports increased 384 percent in the past 10 years. The AWF's report, based on independent lab tests, found "high levels of lead, arsenic and added sulfites in two supermarket-brand imported garlic powders"...
FDA inspectors refused 298 food shipments from China in the first four months of this year...
The FDA said it could not provide information on detention and refusal rates of Chinese produce and how they compare with those for other countries. But FDA records show that since 1994...numerous shipments from several companies -- five Chinese, one Canadian and one Argentine -- were refused because of insects or insect damage, mold or filth between 1994 and 1996. The Canadian firm had repacked Chinese garlic and shipped it, peeled, in five-pound jars. Thirteen fresh garlic shipments from China were refused at California ports...
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
The AWF's report, based on independent lab tests, found "high levels of lead, arsenic and added sulfites in two supermarket-brand imported garlic powders"...Farbles, which is what I say in lieu of the "F" word because I have a toddler daughter who repeats everything I say. I love garlic. I use it in everything. I probably have so much lead and and other heavy metals in my system that I could spit ball bearings. Thank you, China. Sigh. It's the local and organic aisle for me from now on.
My local upscale market had garlic on sale a year or so ago. They displayed it in boxes clearly marked Product of China. No one went near the stuff. Now we’re getting it in jars marked Product of Canada?
The only safe way to evaluate food is “Produced in U.S.A.”.
I wish you could add the word GARLIC to the headline, as Bulbs might just as well refer to light bulbs. Thanks
Unless the Feds have cracked down on port shopping, that doesn't necessarily mean that those shipments didn't make it into this country....
Grow your own - it’s easy.
Oh, I agree. But if I change the headline for clarity, I run the risk of punishment by the Gods of AdminMod. I still have scars from the last time I accidently transgressed, and I am still going around in sack cloth and ashes, to the bewilderment of my family.
Me too! I love garlic and use alot!
I don’t have enough yard to grow the amount of garlic I eat.
We need to push for country of origin/manufacturing labeling. It is the only way we can keep our family safe from this sort of thing. It is only logical that countries that routinely poison their own people and place no value on human life are going to manufacture everything as cheaply as possible with no regard to product safety.
Bulbs might just as well refer to light bulbs.
Bacon Butties! A little bit of heaven. If you are really, really bad, you fry the white bread in the bacon grease before composing your butty. But plain old toast would do.
“We need to push for country of origin/manufacturing labeling.”
HaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHa!!!!!!!
Oh gee... just a sec... let me wipe the tears from my eyes.
Ok... I’m not laughing at you. You are just stuck where I was before the immigration mess. I once thought we had a government that cared, or that we could make respond to us mere citizens.
No way. Forget it. The Chinese lobby will crush that idea like it was a bug.
You need to use the original headline so when people do a search they’ll find it and avoid duplicate posts.
But I think you can add to it in parentheses, for instance, something like this:
Cause for Concern In Chinese Bulbs? (garlic)
This concerns me, because we love garlic, and I also take garlic as a supplement. Good grief.
Unfortunately, you may be correct. I am thinking of starting a website where information about where products are manufactured would be available. For example, I found out today that colgate toothpast is manufactured in China. I called Colgate and noticed their message said (in regards to tainted toothpast) that they had never manufactured in South Africa, but the didn’t say where they manufactured. I googled it-not hard. They manufacture in China.
This is what I’ll be buying for sure.
This is a major part of why I love living in central California. We don’t get nearly as much of this junk import food as the rest of you. My garlic comes from Gilroy, my tomatos were grown just south of Modesto, my peaches come from Patterson, my corn was grown in the Delta, and my almonds were grown in the orchard just up the road from my house. Since shipping costs aren’t a factor, American food tends to be cheaper here than the import cr*p. I like knowing that I can drive 5 minutes and watch my food being grown too.
I would never live anywhere that didn’t have a good local farmers market.
I was just telling someone that we may have to begin growing our own vegetable gardens, or rely on local farmer’s markets for vegetables. I use lots of garlic powder and onion powder, etc. *sigh*
We will be having to raise and slaughter our own meat next, or hire it done, I guess.
I agree, and shop in my local farmer’s market in Del Ray (Alexandria) on Saturday. My slogan is “Buy local as much as possible.” Farmer’s markets are springing up all over the DC metro area. But some times you have to go the grocery store, my farmer’s market has produce, no dairy, and you are at their mercy. I shop mostly at my local organic food store, where I get the garlic of unknown origin, and only go to Giant for detergent, paper towels and that kind of stuff.
I was gonna say the ‘xact same thing. And I use tons of the stuff. I wonder, is it difficult to grow?
I was at the local supermarket the other day and they had a large bag of garlic bulbs (about 8 bulbs) for 99 cents. Yes I bought it and I just tossed it in the can. The bag read “Packed in Florida.” So where was it grown? Morale of the story:if it’s dirt cheap it’s crap from China.
“Produced in U.S.A.” - I don’t mind paying more if it is produced in my country, but I don’t even get a choice for a lot of things any more. Plus, the “producers” are making harder and harder to know. Grocery stores used to have signs where all the produce came from, but mine doesn’t any more. I need to have a talk with them.
Any tips? Is it too late to plant it in the N.E.?
I am going to start raising in my garden. A little will last a long time.
Yeah. I like the convenience of the crushed bottled garlic, but maybe it's back to fresh. Even if it comes from China, the fresh kind probably doesn't have lead and sulfites on it. I could be wrong. jeesh.
I never buy that peeled garlic in jars—it’s just not right!
I will stock up at the local Farmer’s Market this summer. There’s a guy there that sells those long strands of garlic bulbs. One of those lasts all through fall, winter, and spring.
I am a purist. I buy it in bulbs and peel and crush as needed. Tedious, smelly, but ultimately my food tastes better. I make my own salad dressing and mayonaise, and the fresh garlic is essential.
The garlic powder I have on my shelf “Tone’s” says “Product of the USA and China”! Damn!
I thought the worlds supply of garlic was from Gilroy.
If we get light bulbs from China, and we probably do, some of them are probably cause for concern, too.
"¡NO AJO!"
That's what I thought it was about. ;)
And the beat goes on.
I am thinking of starting a website where information about where products are manufactured would be available.
There are no guarantees that your local organic food store isn't stocking stuff grown or manufactured in China or other questionable place. I just surfed around for a couple of hours, discovered that some American "health product" companies are attending the Natural Products Asia Conference in Hong Kong at the end of this month. One of the notable sponsors of the event is United Natural Foods, Inc, arguably the largest distributor of health food (fresh and packaged)to stores in the USA. Click around the conference site and see what you come up with. http://www.naturalproductsasia.com/eng_press.php
I particularly enjoyed the link to "QAI, Quality Assurance International Provider of independent, third party certification of organic food systems." They're a little corporation in San Diego that apparently sets and checks quality stndards for organic foods. They were recently acquired by NSF, a larger quality assurance corporation. Who are these people and why should we trust them?
As for starting a web site giving country of origin of all product ingredients, great idea. Sounds like a fulltime job for several people, however. Can you get a sponsor?
Free Republic is certainly changing, and I'm proud that it is no longer a rubberstamp organization for corporate America. A longtime dedicated capitalist, I'm horrified at what our system is now tolerating. I'm thinking of ways I can help create some kind of consumer outrage groundswell that might be heard in Washington. Perhaps our small but mighty "Get out of Cheney's House" contingent might be steered in new directions?
Very interesting. I buy dry garlic “beads” in bulk at my local semi-natural food market. Not as good as raw garlic, but tasty and quick. I’ll have to ask them to check their source for country of origin. They’re pretty conscientious.
A flavor to tantalize my own British heart.
Reading the cited article ... even the Gilroy proucers use the Chinese garlic in their processed garlic products. It is cheaper!
Which of course means it could STILL be from China the way that FDA requires products to be marked. FDA...hello...you need to fix this mess you have gotten us into!
Thank God and Troy-Bilt, that I can expand the garden.
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