Food Safety Follies

Well, now it's the bean sprouts again.  After waffling for a couple of days, whichever German agency responsible for the e-coli investigation now says even though all the sprouts they tested were clean.  This sounds like the investigation by the FDA after the US spinach disaster in 2006.  While they could trace the vector for the contamination, they could never pinpoint the exact cause.  In either case, it could be a simple one time contaminant, but with modern hygiene regimens at the processing plants in question, the evidence is destroyed every day.  The only way to ensure food safety is to test and hold each lot for 24-48 hours before shipping to retailers.  You can imagine the howls of protest if that sort of regulation is enacted.  Federal inspectors stationed at every plant producing food for US consumers? Maybe, but aside from a presence, they would add little to the equation.  Frankly, I don't know what would prevent all possible contamination events, but whatever it is, someone will be opposing it.