>>Just in case you think organic is safe, a recent article in Science 
News  found that  E coli can transfer into plant tissues so washing will not remove it. This was discovered with the spinach that caused sickness recently.

Bill is absolutely right.  Organic is best when it comes to having food with least pesticides.

One still has to take care of the hygiene aspect, or rather the lack thereof.  All food should be washed with something like viniger/hydrogen peroxide mixture.  It will drastically reduce/kill E. coli and other bacteria (http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/theses/available/etd-08022001-104536/unrestricted/JohnSchurman.pdf)

This gives you an alternative to cooking to eliminate the bacteria risk.  One should eat some vegetables in the raw form to get most of the nutritional benefit.

One should use the veggie wash with one's home grown veggies, too, since bacteria can be transferred onto the plants from the natural fertilzers and the soil.

Unfortunately, one can't take care of this when eating at restaurants where the staff is likely not to follow the ''staff must wash their hands thoroughly before returning to work'' signs.

>>This has resulted in some draconian rules that attempt to totally 
eliminate all possible contamination to veggies in Cal and elsewhere, 
including the elimination of hedgerows, any vegetation within a certain distance, deer fences, etc.

These desperate measures are misplaced IMHO.  This greatly reduces the biodiversity.

Waldemar

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