Produce on the Loose! Where have your groceries been?

Last week, Food & Water Watch launched a new online interactive tool for you to learn more about where your produce is coming from. The tool is called the “Global Grocer,” and it was inspired by a recent Food & Water Watch report entitled The Poisoned Fruit of American Trade Policy.

Why is it so important to know where your produce is coming from? It’s because, as discussed in the report, Americans are now buying more imported produce than ever before. The concern with that comes from some countries not having equivalent food safety standards, combined with the Food & Drug Administration inspecting less than one percent of food shipments coming into the country. In addition, country-of-origin labeling rules have enough loopholes in them that much of this produce goes unlabeled.

So what exactly is the “Global Grocer”? It is a virtual supermarket, in which you can fill your shopping cart with a variety of fruits and vegetables, and then learn the probabilities of those products being imported and where from. In other words, it is a fun and informative way to learn about food safety, and find out which are the smart decisions to make while shopping for produce.

To give the “Global Grocer” a test drive, you can check it out here. We would also like to thank Poccuo, a local Washington, DC company, for helping us put this project together. Enjoy!

- Food & Water Watch