Green Again!

Anemia begone! Spinach is back in dining halls, and students need not worry about that pesky E.coli O157:H7 every time they reach for their favorite leafy green.

After identifying and containing the disease-bearing spinach implicated in the outbreak, the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have signed off on spinach dated October 1 or later. HUDS is slowly but inexorably bringing the vegetable back, debuting with the spinach-topped Chicken Florentine on Saturday night and returning uncooked spinach to the salad bar this week.

“The FDA has identified the growing region that was implicated in the outbreak, things seem contained, and we get our spinach from an entirely different region. So we’ll be very cautious and do all the things we always do: wash carefully, cook to safe temperatures, and keep an eye on the FDA reports . . . .” writes Harvard Dining Services Director for Marketing and Communications Crista Martin in an e-mail.

Not all students care about their missing greens. “I didn’t really like spinach to begin with, so it didn’t really bother me,” says Andrea L. Daniel ‘09.

Put down those iron supplements—it’s safe to go to the D-hall.