Pre-packaged salads have become a huge business, with more than $2.5 billion in sales in 2011. Chiquita’s Fresh Express, Dole Foods Company and Earthbound Farm sell nearly 2 out of 3 bags (61%) of bagged leafy greens.
These companies concentrate their production in just a few regions of the country and process large volumes of product in each of their processing plants, which means that a food safety breakdown in just one area can become a problem for consumers nationwide.