"Waiter, There's a Hair in My Lean Cuisine."

Fair warning-- this post is not for the faint of heart.

Only moments ago, I dug into a spaghetti with meat sauce Lean Cuisine entrée. As you may already know, I'm an avid lunchtime frozen meal consumer and have blogged in the past about my likes and dislikes in regards to them. But what I just experienced puts all my other hang-ups to shame.

After a bite about three quarters of the way through my meal, I pulled a hair out of my mouth. It was five inches long and straight. My hair comes down to the middle of my back and is curly. GROAN. Honestly, the moment of realization that I had just pulled a stranger's hair out of my mouth is to date one of the most disgusting of my life.

Needless to say, I didn't finish my meal.

The incident brings up the same issues of quality assurance that have recently been discussed in the media following several salmonella and e. coli outbreaks. Yet despite the national conversation, I shrugged off an article in The New York Times last month which warned consumers of frozen products which may be tainted with bacteria. I had never personally been affected, and so I paid such stories little mind. However, following my personal experience, the issue has been brought into much clearer focus and I'm now more concerned about the state of frozen food preparation.

Thankfully, investigative pieces like the aforementioned New York Times article have caught the notice government officials. In response, the House Energy and Commerce Committee has issued a draft of the Food Safety Enhancement Act of 2009. If passed, the bill would allow the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) to more easily investigate food producers and track and recall unsafe food products.

The frozen food industry has also taken notice, though it's unclear how receptive they are to the proposed changes to their manufacturing processes. The American Frozen Food Institute (AFFI), the national trade association representing the interests of all segments of the frozen food industry, yesterday released a statement weighing in on the debate:

“The frozen food industry remains committed to food safety as our highest priority," said President and CEO Kraig R. Naasz in a statement released on the AFFI website. "As the voice of the frozen food industry, the [AFFI] continues to champion enhanced food safety efforts. While the general spirit of the ‘Food Safety Enhancement Act of 2009’ coming out of the House Subcommittee on Health is positive, AFFI feels strongly there are some key provisions that should be addressed as the House Energy and Commerce Committee takes up the legislation this week."

I'm not suggesting that the frozen food industry wants to infect Americans with their tainted meals. But I wonder if recent health problems have occurred because of corners various companies have cut-- corners which will cost time and money to round. And in this economy, no one wants to spend money.

As for the status of improvements to frozen food quality assurance, only time will tell. But my own personal Lean Cuisine saga ends here-- I promptly dialed Lean Cuisine's customer service and demanded to speak to a manager. The woman on the other end apologized profusely and assured me that these incidences were extraordinarily uncommon. To redeem Lean Cuisine to me, she even offered to send me coupons for several complimentary Lean Cuisine products.

I accepted. What else could I do? I can take to my blog, I can rant and I can rave, but at the end of the day it's only the United States government that can keep the hairs out of my frozen food.

I think Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA), Chair of the Energy and Commerce Committee said it best: "The current state of our food safety system is dangerous not just for the American public, but also for the food industry itself," he said. "This bill recognizes that the hallmark of strong food safety legislation must be a shared responsibility for food safety oversight between FDA and industry. This legislation will go a long way toward restoring Americans' confidence in our food supply."