Category Archives: Biotoxin

Research – ANSES sets value to protect people from emerging toxin in shellfish

Posted on May 13, 2021 by | Leave a comment

Food Safety News

A French agency has proposed a guideline value to protect consumers of shellfish from a group of marine biotoxins.

The French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health and Safety (ANSES) said brevetoxins (BTX) were first detected in mussels in Corsica in 2018. If ingested by humans, these toxins can cause neurological, gastrointestinal or cardiovascular symptoms.

After this finding a few years ago, ANSES was asked by the Directorate General for Food (DGAL) and Directorate General for Health (DGS) to propose a guideline value to protect the health of people who eat shellfish. The agency has published an opinion and report on the subject in French.

Based on reports of food poisoning in other countries, ANSES has set a guideline value to protect consumers of products such as oysters and mussels. This value is 180 µg/kg of shellfish flesh, expressed in BTX-3 equivalents, with BTX-3 being the form of brevetoxin used as the reference.

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Posted in Algal Toxin, Biotoxin, Brevetoxin, BTX, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Toxin, microbial contamination, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Research, shellfish toxin

UK – Northern Ireland – Consultation on the rationalisation of official control shellfish biotoxin and phytoplankton monitoring points in Carlingford Lough

Posted on April 21, 2021 by | Leave a comment

FSA

Northern Ireland specific
CONSULTATION
Consultation seeking stakeholders’ views on the proposed rationalisation of biotoxin and phytoplankton monitoring in Carlingford Lough and the implementation of Representative Monitoring Points (RMPs) and Associated Harvesting Areas (AHAs).

Who will this consultation be of most interest to?

Carlingford Lough shellfish harvesters, enforcement authorities, official control sampling officers, official control testing laboratories and other interested stakeholders.

Consultation subject

A proposal by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) to rationalise the number of official control monitoring points for biotoxin and phytoplankton monitoring in Carlingford Lough and introduce Representative Monitoring Points (RMPs) and Associated Harvesting Areas (AHAs) .

Purpose of the consultation

To seek comments from industry, enforcement authorities, and other interested stakeholders on the proposed rationalisation of biotoxin and phytoplankton monitoring in Carlingford Lough and the implementation of RMPs and AHAs.

Consultation Pack

Northern Ireland

How to respond

Responses to this consultation should be emailed or posted to the addresses below:

Email: executive.support@food.gov.uk

Postal address:

Food Standards Agency in Northern Ireland
Executive Support Unit
10a-c Clarendon Road, Belfast
Co Antrim
BT1 3GB

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Posted in Algal Toxin, Biotoxin, Food Microbiology Research, Food Toxin, Marine Biotoxin, microbial contamination, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Research, shellfish toxin, Toxin

Hong Kong – Officials investigate ciguatoxin poisoning cases

Posted on April 9, 2021 by | Leave a comment

Outbreak News Today

Hong Kong health officials report investigating a suspected ciguatoxin poisoning cases affecting two people.

The case involves two females, aged 34 and 66 respectively, who developed symptoms of ciguatoxin poisoning including abdominal pain and diarrhea about six to seven hours after consuming a marine fish for dinner at home on April 5. The latter patient also developed perioral numbness and attended the Accident and Emergency Department of Kwong Wah Hospital the next day. She was admitted for further management. Both patients are in a stable condition.

Initial inquiries revealed that the fish consumed was bought from a fish stall in Yeung Uk Road Market, Tsuen Wan, on April 4.

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Posted in Algal Toxin, Biotoxin, Ciguatera, Ciguatera Poisoning, food contamination, Food Hazard, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Poisoning, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Food Toxin, Toxin

France – Product recall: Keraliou brand Tellines – ASP Toxins

Posted on April 9, 2021 by | Leave a comment

Oulah

Product recall: Keraliou brand Tellines

ENCOUNTERED PROBLEM

ASP toxin above the authorized threshold. ASP marine biotoxins (amnesia toxins)

PROPOSED SOLUTION

Do not consume and bring back to the point of sale.

Food poisoning caused by these toxins results in digestive disorders (vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea) within 2 to 24 hours of ingestion of the contaminated shellfish. These disorders may be followed by feelings of dizziness, persistent headaches, disorientation, and possibly recent memory loss.

FURTHER INFORMATION

▸ Barcode
• 3529960019992
• 3529960015307

▸ Lot
• MB377761
• MB37766
• MB37773TEL

▸ DDM
…

▸ Packaging
1 and 3 kg bag delivered to distributors. Bulk resold to consumers

▸ Marketing
From 03/29/2021 to 03/31/2021

▸ Health mark
FR 29.189.525 CE

▸ Consumer service contact
0622819352

▸ Source
https://rappel.conso.gouv.fr/

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Posted in Algal Toxin, Amnesic Shellfish Poisoning, ASP, Biotoxin, food contamination, Food Hazard, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Poisoning, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Food Toxin, Oulah, shellfish toxin, Toxin

RASFF Alert – Diarrhoeic Shellfish Poisoning (DSP) – Frozen Cooked Mussels

Posted on March 12, 2021 by | Leave a comment

European Food Alerts

RASFF

Diarrhoeic Shellfish Poisoning (DSP) toxins (247 µg/kg – ppb) in frozen cooked mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis) from Spain in Itally

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Posted in Algal Toxin, Biotoxin, Diarrhoeic Shellfish Poisoning, DSP, food contamination, Food Hazard, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Poisoning, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Food Toxin, RASFF, shellfish toxin

Research – Botulism breakthrough? Taming botulinum toxin to deliver therapeutics

Posted on January 17, 2021 by | Leave a comment

Science Daily

kswfoodworld

While rare, botulism can cause paralysis and is potentially fatal. It is caused by nerve-damaging toxins produced by Clostridium botulinum — the most potent toxins known. These toxins are often found in contaminated food (home canning being a major culprit). Infants can also develop botulism from ingesting C. botulinum spores in honey, soil, or dust; the bacterium then colonizes their intestines and produces the toxin.

Once paralysis develops, there is no way to reverse it, other than waiting for the toxins to wear off. People with serious cases of botulism may need to be maintained on ventilators for weeks or months. But a new treatment approach and delivery vehicle, described today in Science Translational Medicine, could change that.

“There are anti-toxins, but these only work before the toxins enter the motor neurons,” says Min Dong, PhD, a researcher in Boston Children’s Hospital’s Department of Urology and corresponding author on the paper. “What we have developed is the first therapy that can eliminate toxins after they get inside neurons.”

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Posted in Bacterial Toxin, Biotoxin, botulism, Clostridium, Clostridium botulinum, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Toxin, microbial contamination, Microbiology, Research, Toxin

USA – Cozy Vale Raw Milk again linked to E. coli

Posted on December 14, 2020 by | Leave a comment

Food Poison Journal

Cozy Vale Creamery of Tenino, WA, is advising consumers to throw out or return any of the dairy’s retail raw milk and cream products with the best by dates of Dec. 12-14 through 12-23 because state tests showed E. coli contamination.

The unpasteurized dairy products were bottled in a gallon, half-gallon, quart, and pint containers, were sold to customers, including retail stores, in Western Washington. The dairy had pathogen problems at least twice in 2017.

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Posted in Bacteria, bacterial contamination, Bacterial Toxin, Biotoxin, E.coli, food contamination, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Pathogen, Food Poisoning, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Food Toxin

RASFF Alerts – DSP – Diarrhoeic Shellfish Poisoning – Canned Cockles

Posted on November 27, 2020 by | Leave a comment

European Food Alerts

RASFF

Diarrhoeic Shellfish Poisoning (DSP) toxins – okadaic acid (> 320 µg/kg – ppb) in live cockles used in canned cockles from Portugal in Spain

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Posted in Algal Toxin, Biotoxin, Diarrhoeic Shellfish Poisoning, DSP, food contamination, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Poisoning, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Food Toxin, Marine Biotoxin, okadaic acid, shellfish toxin, Toxin

New Zealand – Shellfish biotoxin alert lifted for South Head

Posted on November 6, 2020 by | Leave a comment

MPI

The Ministry for Primary Industries today removed the public health warning against collecting shellfish from the North Island West Coast.

This warning was from South Head (Manukau Harbour) to Tirua Point (South of Kawhia) – North Island.  Further sampling of shellfish along this coastline has shown that Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning (PSP) toxins are now at safe levels.

Other warnings remain in place for West Coast – Waipapakauri to Kaipara – North Island

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Posted in Algal Toxin, Biotoxin, food contamination, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Pathogen, Food Poisoning, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Toxin, PSP, Toxin

Denmark – Risk of vero-toxin-producing E. coli in French white mold cheese

Posted on October 30, 2020 by | Leave a comment

DVFA

Lidl Danmark K / S recalls Milbona French white mold cheese due to risk of vero-toxin-forming E. coli in the product

Recalled Foods , Published: October 29, 2020

What food:
Milbona French white mold cheese 
Shelf life: 31.10.2020 
Net content: approx. 100 g
Sold in:
Lidl Denmark’s stores across the country.
Producer:
Jermi Käsewerk GmbH, Ritter-Heinrich-Straße 2, 88471 Laupheim, Germany
Company recalling:
Lidl Danmark K / S
Cause:
Vero-toxin-producing E. coli has been detected in the product
Risk:
Infection with E.coli can cause acute stomach infection with diarrhea, severe abdominal pain and vomiting
Advice for consumers:
The Danish Veterinary and Food Administration advises consumers to deliver the product back to the store where it was purchased or to discard it.

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Posted in Bacterial Toxin, Biotoxin, food contamination, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Pathogen, Food Poisoning, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Food Toxin, STEC, STEC E.coli, Toxin