EDITORIALS * EDITORIAUX

Food safety Ruth Friendship-Keller, PAg M any consumers have concerns about the food they eat. Studies by the Consumers' Association of Canada have shown that after friends and relatives Canadian consumers most often turn to health practitioners for advice on food safety.' Because of this a new booklet containing valuable information on food safety is included with this issue of CMAJ for use as a reference in responding to the concerns of patients. What Everyone Should Know about Food Safety was researched and written by Susan Hirshorn, whose articles on health and consumer affairs have appeared in many publications, including Protect Yourself, Canadian Consumer and Canadian Living. It was published by the Ontario Institute of Professional Agrologists, an organization of over 1200 university-educated, highly trained professionals who apply scientific principles and practices to advise on, teach or regulate the business of agriculture and the conduct of scientific research in agriculture. The editorial committee comprised reg-

istered professional dietitians and agrologists. The goal in producing this booklet was to provide accurate information to the public through a source they rely on. The booklet addresses the concerns many consumers have about food. It gives advice on the safe handling and storage of food, information to help consumers understand man-made and natural chemicals, explanations of what pesticides are and why they are used, facts about "organic" produce and information on the use of antibiotics and hormones in livestock. In addition, the booklet informs consumers of what is being done about these issues by government and the agricultural industry and what consumers can do to ensure that their food is safe.

Reference 1. Food Safety in Canada: a Survey of Consumer Attitudes and Opinions, Consumers' Association of Canada, Ottawa, 1990

Ruth Friendship-Keller is executive director, Ontario Institute ofProfessional Agrologists, Guelph, Ont. Additional copies ofWhat Everyone Should Know about Food Safety are available from: Ontario Institute of Professional Agrologists, 203-173 Woolwich St., Guelph, ON NIH 3V4; telephone andfax (519) 837-2820.

Back to basics There is no disease, bodily or mental, which adoption of vegetable diet and pure water has not infallibly mitigated, wherever the experiment has been fairly tried. - Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792-1822)

JULY 15, 1991

CAN MED ASSOC J 1991; 145 (2)

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