“Attack of the Killer Tomatoes” was a 1988 “B movie” spoof produced by former California politician Steve Peace. He should have waited until 2008 to write the movie, replete with nincompoop government regulators, a hysterical mass media and suicidal tomato growers jumping from tall buildings.

The FDA is responsible for causing the $250 million loss for American tomato growers. They may have mistakenly pointed the finger at Florida and California grown tomatoes as the cause of a salmonella “outbreak” of 900 victims, when it appears that everything that goes into salsa and grown in Mexico is the real culprit. Mexico provides 80 percent of the tomatoes to America—would it have been such a stretch to think Mexican tomatoes were the culprits, or is that just too politically incorrect to imagine?

Hecho en Mexico
For many years, I have been claiming that food crops grown in Mexico are tainted. Mexico dumps raw sewage into their water. You cannot swim in the water, you cannot drink the water and Mexican farmers use that same sewage-laden water to irrigate their crops. Do the math—untreated water used for crop irrigation results in contaminated food.

Now the FDA bright bulbs are recanting their original accusations and claiming that all along they had cleared California tomato growers—yeah, tell it to their bankers.

How many food scares and bacterial outbreaks must Americans be subjected to before our government officials point their fingers at the lack of health regulations from countries whose food products we import on the cheap?

The FDA claims that it is responsible for protecting the public health by assuring the safety, efficacy and security of human and veterinary drugs, biological products, medical devices, our nation’s food supply and cosmetics. Yet, they do not require the same U.S. health and safety standards of Mexico for the food products we import.

Mexican cities and towns routinely run sewer lines right to drinking water sources, as well as dumping sewage into the ocean. Millions of tourists who visit Mexico every year are warned of the areas where swimming is dangerous or not allowed. Bottled water is served in hotels and restaurants. “Montezuma’s Revenge” is not just a little bout of discomfort; it’s dangerous bacterial, parasitical or viral poisoning, due to being exposed to “sanitation failure” and contaminated food and water.

You Are What You Eat
Taste and eating habits are curious things; striking a balance between cost and health seems less important for the cost conscious. Depending on the brand or the flavor, prepared salsa can be made with rotting tomatoes and peppers and other old, rotting veggies. Salsa is a convenient and economical way to get rid of old, moldy, bacteria-laden vegetables

On that note, some larger grocery stores will do just about anything to sell fruits and vegetables before they are considered truly “rotten” and challenge store profit. One large chain-store produce manager recently cut-up and handed out cantaloupe chunks to shoppers until I told him that it was moldy. It seems that they had received a large truckload of overripe melons they needed to “unload.” Grocery stores also use the rotting, over-ripe vegetables from the produce department in their salad bars, prepared packaged salads and in their prepared cooked foods. This happens regularly unless you shop at a farmers’ market, natural food co-op or small independent gourmet grocery store.

Restaurants must use every last carrot and piece of meat in order to make the maximum profit, thus we are fed the Sunday buffet omelet special, interesting stir-fries and meatloaf specials. Gravy and sauces can cover up just about anything, except bacteria and parasites.

America’s demand for cheap food is costing us not only our health and well-being, but also a lot of Kaopectate. It’s amazing that we can be so haughty about what region our wine comes from, but not where our food is grown. I prefer knowing where and how it was grown if I am going to eat it. However, the FDA is concerned with bad PR and political correctness, not how fecal matter has permeated into Mexican crops. Not all “organic” fertilizer is a good thing.

Katy Grimes is a longtime political analyst and Sacramento native. Read her blog at katygrimes.blogtownhall.com.