Kitchen

[Reever]

Just a word of caution, Pepitas (pumpkin seeds) are often imported from China. They can be found in salads and trail mixes. 1/5 of China's farmlands are polluted with toxic metals, flooded with raw sewage and are filled with unregulated pesticides.  Is there a shortage of pumpkins in America?  Where is the leadership to curb the trade imbalance ? Our American climate from Sea to Shining Sea is suitable to grow pumpkins!!   Please be aware as consumer citizens that we cannot keep importing from China.

[qbetzforreal]

Most pepitas that I have had have come from Mexico.  Hence the latin name.

[SandySparkles]

I use pepitas in my homemade granola, butternut squash soup, and was not aware that they are now imorted from anywhere other than Mexico. I buy mine from a local Latin foods grocer, and will continue to do so, but this is interesting.😊

With so much of our food being impoted from other countries now, it is inevitable that some of it will end up on our plates. Thanks for posting!😊

~~~All we need is LOVE💖

[JeanLouiseFinch]

I buy the Harvested for You brand at Costco for my homemade keto granola.  It’s non-GMO, organic.  

[EatWell]

Germack, Squirrel Brand, and Ferris brands nut mixes all contain pepitas.  Not sure about Jeffrery  Zakarian nuts.                                                  

“Stay safe. Stay home.”

~Put food in front of me, and I will eat it.~
                                                                                                                   

[Mz iMac]

@Reever 

Have you written your concerns to the The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)?

If not, why not?  Complaining on a message board is not going to get you anywhere or are you just venting just for the hell of it?

[Bhvbum]

I'm not so sure I would want to eat pumpkin seeds from China but we have daily recalls of food in the US also. Subject to the same test and farm waste.  One of the big culprits has been being sprouts.  And then it comes down to what consumers are willing to pay. 

"The estimate is that at least 75 percent of the seeds sold in the United States are imported from China, where cheap labor for hulling the seeds keeps the price well below what American producers charge."  NYTimes

We buy their seeds because we expect them to buy our goods.