It’s no secret that the government shutdown has shaken things up quite a bit over the last week or more, and many might be surprised to hear that the implications of this shutdown stretch all the way into your kitchen. You guessed it – we’re talking about trouble for the food industry.

A recent Salmonella outbreak in chicken has sickened more than 300 people across at least 18 states and, unfortunately, a “skeletal staff”at the CDC is making it slow and arduous to identify the cause and severity of the outbreak. Without the staff necessary to run appropriate tests, our ability to prepare for and warn consumers about major health threats is reduced drastically.

With 45% of the FDA’s workers furloughed, the majority of inspections on imported foods including seafood, produce and packaged foods have been suspended. While the FDA normally inspects only about 1-2% of our country’s current import shipments, which is estimated at 12 million per year, with the government shutdown this goes down to nearly 0% and imports won’t be turned away because they won’t be looked at. If you’re interested in what some of those rejected imports are all about click here to see one described as “FILTHY.”

So what can you do to protect your family from unsafe foods?

One great way to protect yourself is to avoid “The Ten Riskiest Foods” regulated by the FDA which includes favorites like cheese, tomatoes and some seafood items. Roughly 90% of all shrimp consumed in America is imported from other countries, most of which being Southeast Asian countries that rely heavily on antibiotics and have a less than perfect track record with the FDA. Opt for domestic seafood like those delivered by Passanante’s Home Food Services which are wild caught from the Atlantic or Pacific and exclusive to the U.S. or Canada.

At Passanante’s we are more committed than ever to the quality and safety of our foods. If we wouldn’t put it on our own dinner table, we wouldn’t consider delivering it to your door. If you would like to schedule a time to talk with one of our sales reps about our home food delivery service feel free to give us a call at 1-800-772-7786.