The FDA wants you to stop eating raw cookie dough

Devastating news: The Food and Drug Administration needs you to stop eating raw cookie dough. 

This terrible turn of events comes following the Center for Disease Control and the FDA's investigation of an outbreak of infections caused by Shiga toxin-producing E.coli found in certain brands of flour. The CDC announced the investigation on June 1 after General Mills recalled multiple varieties of the pantry staple.

On Tuesday, the FDA issued a consumer update warning against consumption of raw cookie dough. But it doesn't stop there-- all raw doughs and batters are potentially off limits as they could be contaminated with E.coli.

In early June, the CDC shared guidelines for avoiding flour-related illness. It suggests no raw flour consumption of any kind, including brands not listed in the recall. In addition, all batters and doughs should be baked or cooked before eating.

In short, the best part of baking is effectively ruined thanks to a seemingly harmless ingredient.

So, why is flour so susceptible to contamination? The FDA explains:

“Flour is derived from a grain that comes directly from the field and typically is not treated to kill bacteria,” says Leslie Smoot, Ph.D., a senior advisor in FDA’s Office of Food Safety and a specialist in the microbiological safety of processed foods. So if an animal heeds the call of nature in the field, bacteria from the animal waste could contaminate the grain, which is then harvested and milled into flour.

Disgusting, but informative. Thanks, FDA! Even though this ruins our weekend plans. 

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