Brassica Protection Products has today [Thursday] sought to reassure consumers that any sprouts grown by its Brassica growers and under the BroccoSprouts® label strictly follow all Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidances for the growing of safe sprouts.
The reassurance comes after the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) issued warnings by over the safety of alfalfa sprouts, in relation to an outbreak of food poisoning in California almost a year old, in which the sprout grower was found not to be fully following the FDA guidances.
Group president, Tony Talalay, commented: “To our knowledge there has never been contamination of any sprouts when the FDA procedures are properly followed. In addition, there has never been a reported case of food borne illness associated with broccoli sprouts.”
The company says that as well as following FDA guidelines, it has implemented measures to ensure the sanitation of the seeds used for sprouting, and the implementation of a Hold-and-Release testing program where all batches of sprouts must be tested for the presence of E. coli and Salmonella bacteria before they are shipped to stores.
The company also highlighted several new scientific studies from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and other leading universities, which reinforce the powerful disease preventing potential of broccoli sprouts.
Three recently published laboratory studies show that the Phase 2 enzyme sulforaphane GS (SGS(TM)) in broccoli sprouts may help prevent macular degeneration, hypertension and prostate cancer. Johns Hopkins University researchers were the first to discover that broccoli sprouts have a much higher concentration of this antioxidant phytochemical than adult broccoli. Research is underway to confirm or modify these laboratory findings in human clinical tests.
