Did you know that the FDA permits up to 10mg of animal excrement in every pound of cocoa? And that’s not the only thing on the list, either. Small amounts of animal byproduct, mold, larvae, animal hair, insect parts, and more are permitted in common foods that you’ll find on your grocery store shelves.

Now, you’re very unlikely to experience any real negative effect from the trace amounts of animal byproduct, insect pieces, or whatever else you ingest in a cup of hot cocoa, jar of peanut butter, or the tomato sauce used on your pizza, and this is why the FDA has permitted these trace amounts. Of course no one wants to eat rat turds, but it’s not going to kill anyone, and it’s left at that.

The story that these FDA guidelines don’t tell, however, is that not all cocoa is created equal. Two tins of cocoa -- one that contains 10mg of rat excrement in every pound, and one that contains zero rat excrement -- both receive the same stamp of approval from the FDA and sit on the same shelf. But those two tins are not the same product. One is good enough. One is great.

Mistakes are inevitable. In our example of mass producing food products, you’ll be hard pressed to not find some animal this or insect that making its way into a few products. But what about the companies out there banking on “good enough” -- not doing anything to get their number from 10mg to 5mg? Or from 5mg to 1mg? 10mg is good enough to land on grocery store shelves; but I, for one, would rather have less rat turd in my cocoa.

Are you settling for the bare minimum -- good enough? Or aiming higher?

- PS

6/21/19

• AMRAP 25

• 25 SA KB OHS, right (53/35)

• 25 SA KB OHS, left

• 50’ SA KB OH walking lunge, right

• 50’ SA KB OH walking lunge, left

• 25 SA KBS, right

• 25 SA KBS, left

• 50’ SA KB OH walking lunge, right

• 50’ SA KB OH walking lunge, left