The avocado-based dip was the cause of an aggressive barfing incident that I’ve never been able to push aside, in the same way I wasn’t able to eat muffins for years after a barfing incident when I was a child.

I’m still amazed at the effects sight, sound and smell can have on food preferences.

It was about 33 years ago, and my ex-wife decided to make a batch of her self-proclaimed world-class guac.

We were driving to my relatives in Barrie, Ontario (that’s in Canada) and somewhere on highway 400, we pulled over and too much booze or guac or just being with me caused one of the most violent vomiting incidents I’ve witnessed.

The smell of the guacamole is forged in my memory.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has released two reports on its sampling of whole fresh avocados and hot peppers to determine how frequently harmful bacteria are found in each commodity.

For the whole fresh avocado sampling assignment, the FDA collected, tested and analyzed 1,615 domestic and imported avocado samples for Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes. Of the 1,615 samples, 12 (0.74%) tested positive for Salmonella. As to the Listeria monocytogenes testing, the agency primarily tested the pulp of the avocado samples (as the pulp is the part of the fruit people eat), and some samples of the fruit’s skin. Of the 1,254 avocado pulp samples, 3 (far less than one percent) were positive for Listeria monocytogenes. Of the 361 avocado skin samples, 64 (17.73%) were positive for Listeria monocytogenes. FoodSafety.gov advises consumers to wash all produce before cutting into it or eating.  

Washing doesn’t do much, but with avocadoes it seems the exterior skins are loaded with Listeria, so the opportunities for cross-contamination are huge (think of how you prepare avocado).

CBS News concludes that one-in-five avocados tested positive for Listeria on the outside, so better wash those skins.

Washing won’t do much, but clean the damn cutting board and be the bug, think about where it would go.

Like my ex barfing.