Grasshopper tacos banned at SF taqueria

Sad news from Boing Boing. I have to admit I do understand the position of the FDA, especially after the E. Coli break out in Europe. However, there should be a way of overcoming the problem, albeit with all the red tape typical of these conflicts, it could probably take a very long time. *sigh*

Here's the Re-blogged post:

Grasshopper tacos banned at SF taqueria: "

San Francisco Health Department has banned La Oaxaqueña Bakery and Restaurant from selling their famous grasshopper tacos. I've never tasted them but I certainly would! The problem isn't that they're serving grasshoppers, but rather their Oaxaca grasshopper source isn't FDA-approved. (Photo of 'A basket of Chapulines (Roasted Cricket) in a market in Tepoztlan, Mexico' by Meutia Caerani/Indradi Soemardjan.) From KGO:

(Proprietor Harry) Persaud says grasshoppers are a traditional food in his native Oaxaca.

'They're eaten on every street corner in Oaxaca, they're sold in all the markets and they've been doing that for decades,' Persaud said.

In fact, Persaud says he gets the grasshoppers straight from Oaxaca, along with the mole and the tortillas, to make his food as authentic as possible...

'They want us to get grasshoppers from here, United States,' Persaud said.

Even though Persaud has a permit to import the grasshoppers, the health department says the place he is buying them is not FDA approved. In fact, they said they do not know of any federally approved source for grasshoppers.

'SF won't let restaurant owner sell grasshopper tacos'


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