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Going Local to Buy Safe Foods Save Email Print
Harrisonburg, Va.
Posted: 5:00 AM Jul 23, 2008
Last Updated: 2:24 PM Jul 23, 2008
Reporter: Emily Brown
Email Address: ebrown@whsv.com

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Recent news has looked at where the FDA's salmonella investigation is looking now that tomatoes are not being blamed for the outbreak. However, a new food that is under fire is jalapeño peppers.

With questions still unanswered about what's safe to eat, many are turning to locally grown foods. Many people confess they're nervous about what they're eating.

People are concerned when they don't know from where the food originally came. Fortunately, it seems this need couldn't have come at a better time.

In Harrisonburg, the Turner Pavilion is on its way up and is scheduled to be completed in September. On top of that, prices at the grocery store have been climbing, partially due to the price of corn after the Midwest flooding.

However, for most people, it's health-related issues making them buy produce they know is safe.

"People are more comfortable buying local produce at home, especially with the salmonella scare. There was a story this morning about the jalapeño peppers. We don't know where they came from; they're from Mexico. Here, we know they're locally grown, and it just gives us a level of comfort in mind when buying produce and feeding our families that you wouldn't have when buying from a foreign provider,” says Janice Fitzgerald, a shopper at the Harrisonburg Farmer's Market.

In response to why people should shop local, Ryan Patrick, owner of Ryan's Fruit Market, says, "Because you know that it's grown locally, and you know that no matter what the food is not going to be contaminated with bacteria or anything like that. Too much stuff is becoming contaminated, like the jalapeños and tomatoes, getting E-coli and all that stuff. Eventually people will have to in order to eat food that is safe."

The FDA may have changed its investigation to to jalapeño peppers, but for some, such as the tomato farmers, the damage has already been done.

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