Hamburg Restaurants Just Say No to Vegetables
By LAURA STEVENS
More
Bean Sprouts Are New E. Coli Suspect
"If it keeps going like this…" he said, trailing off as he looked at the bins of untouched fruit and vegetables across his 30-foot-long display. "It's already so bad."
Lettuce, tomatoes and cucumbers typically adorn German sandwiches and most other meals—including the herring and other seafood sandwiches that are staples at the Hamburg fish market. But weeks into the severe Escherichia coli bacterial outbreak that appears to have emanated in or near this port city, the mystery infection has taken an economic toll here as many worried consumers swear off eating these foods.
At trendy Café Knuth, a favorite hangout for locals, with small tables surrounding the corner Hamburg Altona establishment, management set a blackboard sign outside the restaurant informing customers no vegetables are being served. The decision removed about half the café's menu items, said owner Einar Möller, and sales have been hard hit. He declined to say by how much, but added that it is "too much."
The infection "is the enemy among us," he said, shaking his head. "It's like an alien or something. Everyone knows someone who has gotten ill."
The red-brick-dominated city of Hamburg, which lies along the Elbe River about an hour's drive southeast of the North Sea, was home to the first cases of the bacterial infections and the majority of reported infections with the worst complications have been reported within a few hundred miles of the city.
The German Farmers' Association has estimated its farmers are losing some €30 million ($44 million) a week in sales. But the economic impact goes beyond that for restaurants, produce suppliers and markets in the region.
At Sunday's fish market, which opens at 5 a.m., hundreds of locals and tourists gathered early to listen to the fish auctions, shop or continue the party after a night of revelry in Hamburg's nearby Reeperbahn district. But piles of cucumbers and cases of tomatoes sat untouched by those wandering through the stalls. And fish sandwiches were sold without the usual toppings of lettuce, cucumber or other raw vegetables.
Mr. Erber says he is losing between €500 and €1,000 in sales per day. And while he usually sells about 50 kilograms, or 110 pounds, of tomatoes at €2.90 per kilogram, he has dropped the price to €1 per kilogram. Still no one is buying.
"No one wants it," he said.
While the source of the outbreak still isn't certain, authorities continue their frenzied search for the cause of the disease. Hamburg hospitals have been flooded with patients, requiring doctors and nurses to work overtime and skip vacations. There is talk of reactivating retired doctors and nurses. Recent clues haven't led to conclusive answers about the cause of the outbreak, and the director of Germany's Robert Koch Institute says he can't rule out that the source might already be gone.
At a news conference on Sunday, Hamburg health minister Cornelia Prufer-Storcks said she is disappointed that some restaurants are still selling salads.
"Avoiding raw tomatoes, lettuce and cucumbers is the best way to avoid more cases," added Germany's health minister, Daniel Bahr.
In Hamburg, sandwiches in glass bakery cases look bare without any greens or reds—just meat or cheese. Signs dot restaurant windows, advising customers that either extra precautions are being taken, such as washing produce twice, or that no vegetables are being served. Grocery stores have plenty of lettuce in stock—most of which is starting to wilt.
At a small bakery near the Hamburg Altona train station, sales of now very plain sandwiches have dropped. "The customers aren't excited about it," said the manager, Anja Rehfeld. The location, one in a chain of about 180 in north Germany, usually uses about 20 kilograms of tomatoes a week.
Many cafés and restaurants around town have made the same tough decision to hold the vegetables—in part because most Germans are avoiding raw produce anyway.
"I think it's a little hysterical, but then again, I'm not eating them," said Andreas Bastian, who lives in Hamburg. "Even if a restaurant or store puts out a sign saying they've taken precautions, I'm avoiding them."
He has skipped the raw produce since the warnings came out—as has the hotel where he works. The hotel's breakfast buffet "now has mozzarella without tomatoes," he said with a laugh.
At the Mercado, an inside market hall with independent fast-food stands and specialty food retailers, most of the businesses have seen a hit of at least 50% to their profits, owners said.
Saturday afternoon the three-story hall was nearly empty, with only a few customers wandering through the maze of stalls. Most of the restaurants had given up on fresh vegetables as toppings. A falafel stand changed its toppings bar, replacing the offending ingredients with cooked carrots, potatoes and zucchini.
"It's been really quiet for about two weeks," said Tikean Senik, who helps run an organic-vegetable stand inside the market. On a typical Saturday, he sells about 800 cucumbers at 89 European cents each. As of Saturday afternoon, he had sold one. Sales are down between 70% and 80%.
But not everyone is avoiding vegetables. Peter Schmidt and Candy Zwifka, both in their mid-20s, hit the fish market at 7 a.m. on Sunday for a herring sandwich and coffee. Both think the bacteria is being overhyped, and they compared it to the hysteria over swine flu and SARS.
They haven't given up raw vegetables—in fact, the danger adds excitement, they said, laughing.
"I think it's a new kind of bungee jumping—just eat a salad," said Mr. Zwifka.
By LAURA STEVENS
=================================================
HAMBURG—Produce is usually a staple ware at this affluent, northern German city's 300-year-old fish market, which stretches along its massive harbor and bustles with live music, flea markets and hundreds of food vendors. But early on Sunday, Abdullah Erber was one of dozens who didn't bother bringing lettuce to sell at their open-air stands.
View Full Image
Reuters
A salesman awaits customers last month at a farmer's market in Hamburg, where the E. coli outbreak has hurt sales.
HAMBURG—Produce is usually a staple ware at this affluent, northern German city's 300-year-old fish market, which stretches along its massive harbor and bustles with live music, flea markets and hundreds of food vendors. But early on Sunday, Abdullah Erber was one of dozens who didn't bother bringing lettuce to sell at their open-air stands.
View Full Image
ReutersA salesman awaits customers last month at a farmer's market in Hamburg, where the E. coli outbreak has hurt sales.
More
Bean Sprouts Are New E. Coli Suspect
"If it keeps going like this…" he said, trailing off as he looked at the bins of untouched fruit and vegetables across his 30-foot-long display. "It's already so bad."
Lettuce, tomatoes and cucumbers typically adorn German sandwiches and most other meals—including the herring and other seafood sandwiches that are staples at the Hamburg fish market. But weeks into the severe Escherichia coli bacterial outbreak that appears to have emanated in or near this port city, the mystery infection has taken an economic toll here as many worried consumers swear off eating these foods.
At trendy Café Knuth, a favorite hangout for locals, with small tables surrounding the corner Hamburg Altona establishment, management set a blackboard sign outside the restaurant informing customers no vegetables are being served. The decision removed about half the café's menu items, said owner Einar Möller, and sales have been hard hit. He declined to say by how much, but added that it is "too much."
The infection "is the enemy among us," he said, shaking his head. "It's like an alien or something. Everyone knows someone who has gotten ill."
The red-brick-dominated city of Hamburg, which lies along the Elbe River about an hour's drive southeast of the North Sea, was home to the first cases of the bacterial infections and the majority of reported infections with the worst complications have been reported within a few hundred miles of the city.
The German Farmers' Association has estimated its farmers are losing some €30 million ($44 million) a week in sales. But the economic impact goes beyond that for restaurants, produce suppliers and markets in the region.
At Sunday's fish market, which opens at 5 a.m., hundreds of locals and tourists gathered early to listen to the fish auctions, shop or continue the party after a night of revelry in Hamburg's nearby Reeperbahn district. But piles of cucumbers and cases of tomatoes sat untouched by those wandering through the stalls. And fish sandwiches were sold without the usual toppings of lettuce, cucumber or other raw vegetables.
Mr. Erber says he is losing between €500 and €1,000 in sales per day. And while he usually sells about 50 kilograms, or 110 pounds, of tomatoes at €2.90 per kilogram, he has dropped the price to €1 per kilogram. Still no one is buying.
"No one wants it," he said.
While the source of the outbreak still isn't certain, authorities continue their frenzied search for the cause of the disease. Hamburg hospitals have been flooded with patients, requiring doctors and nurses to work overtime and skip vacations. There is talk of reactivating retired doctors and nurses. Recent clues haven't led to conclusive answers about the cause of the outbreak, and the director of Germany's Robert Koch Institute says he can't rule out that the source might already be gone.
At a news conference on Sunday, Hamburg health minister Cornelia Prufer-Storcks said she is disappointed that some restaurants are still selling salads.
"Avoiding raw tomatoes, lettuce and cucumbers is the best way to avoid more cases," added Germany's health minister, Daniel Bahr.
In Hamburg, sandwiches in glass bakery cases look bare without any greens or reds—just meat or cheese. Signs dot restaurant windows, advising customers that either extra precautions are being taken, such as washing produce twice, or that no vegetables are being served. Grocery stores have plenty of lettuce in stock—most of which is starting to wilt.
At a small bakery near the Hamburg Altona train station, sales of now very plain sandwiches have dropped. "The customers aren't excited about it," said the manager, Anja Rehfeld. The location, one in a chain of about 180 in north Germany, usually uses about 20 kilograms of tomatoes a week.
Many cafés and restaurants around town have made the same tough decision to hold the vegetables—in part because most Germans are avoiding raw produce anyway.
"I think it's a little hysterical, but then again, I'm not eating them," said Andreas Bastian, who lives in Hamburg. "Even if a restaurant or store puts out a sign saying they've taken precautions, I'm avoiding them."
He has skipped the raw produce since the warnings came out—as has the hotel where he works. The hotel's breakfast buffet "now has mozzarella without tomatoes," he said with a laugh.
At the Mercado, an inside market hall with independent fast-food stands and specialty food retailers, most of the businesses have seen a hit of at least 50% to their profits, owners said.
Saturday afternoon the three-story hall was nearly empty, with only a few customers wandering through the maze of stalls. Most of the restaurants had given up on fresh vegetables as toppings. A falafel stand changed its toppings bar, replacing the offending ingredients with cooked carrots, potatoes and zucchini.
"It's been really quiet for about two weeks," said Tikean Senik, who helps run an organic-vegetable stand inside the market. On a typical Saturday, he sells about 800 cucumbers at 89 European cents each. As of Saturday afternoon, he had sold one. Sales are down between 70% and 80%.
But not everyone is avoiding vegetables. Peter Schmidt and Candy Zwifka, both in their mid-20s, hit the fish market at 7 a.m. on Sunday for a herring sandwich and coffee. Both think the bacteria is being overhyped, and they compared it to the hysteria over swine flu and SARS.
They haven't given up raw vegetables—in fact, the danger adds excitement, they said, laughing.
"I think it's a new kind of bungee jumping—just eat a salad," said Mr. Zwifka.
=====================================================
No comments:
Post a Comment