Category Archives: Campylobacter

ECDC and EFSA – Food-borne Outbreaks in EU Report 2010

Posted on March 8, 2012 by | Leave a comment

ECDC

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) launched their annual report on zoonoses and food-borne outbreaks.

The report,  providing data on 15 zoonotic diseases in the European Union for 2010, supports the European Commission and EU Member States in their consideration of possible measures to protect citizens from risks related to zoonoses.

The report highlights a positive progress in the reduction of reported human cases of salmonellosis by almost 9% in 2010, as well as decreases in other zoonoses such as infections caused by Yersinia enterocolitica, Trichinella and Listeria monocytogenes. “Decreases in human cases of salmonellosis and other zoonotic diseases show that EU level control measures, resulting from surveillance of disease in humans with information from food and animals, are effective”, states Johan Giesecke, Chief Scientist at ECDC.

On the other hand, the number of cases of  campylobacteriosis has been increasing over the last five years, and human cases of Shiga toxin/verotoxin -producing Escherichia coli (STEC/VTEC) are also increasing. These trends “highlight the need of further joint efforts”, continues Prof. Gieseke. “For this, ECDC will continue to strengthen its links with all important partners and foster collaboration in order to decrease the occurrence of these diseases in the EU”.

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Posted in Bacillus, Campylobacter, E.coli, E.coli O157, EFSA, EHEC, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Technology, Listeria, Listeria monocytogenes, Microbiology, Pathogen, Salmonella, STEC

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Ingenta Studies – High Pressure E.coli/Campylobacter – Essential Oils E.coli/Salmonella

Posted on March 8, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Ingenta High Pressure

This study evaluated the high pressure inactivation of Campylobacter jejuni, Escherichia coli, and poultry meat spoilage organisms. All treatments were performed in aseptically prepared minced poultry meat. Treatment of 19 strains of C. jejuni at 300 MPa and 30°C revealed a large variation of pressure resistance.

Ingenta Essential Oils

The efficacy of cinnamaldehyde and Sporan for reducing Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Salmonella on spinach leaves was investigated. Spinach leaves were inoculated with a five-strain cocktail of Salmonella or E. coli O157:H7, air dried for ca. 30 min, and then immersed in a treatment solution containing 5 ppm of free chlorine, cinnamaldehyde, or Sporan (800 and 1,000 ppm) alone or in combination with 200 ppm of acetic acid (20%) for 1 min or with water (control).

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Posted in Bacteria, Campylobacter, E.coli, E.coli O157, EHEC, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Safety, Food Technology, Food Testing, Microbiology, Pathogen, Salmonella

Resistant Bacteria Remains Problem for Meat

Posted on March 6, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Food Safety News

Antibiotic resistance remains common among meat-borne pathogens, according to the annual National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System report released late last week.
From January to December 2010, samples of retail chicken breast, ground turkey, ground beef, and pork chops were collected and tested for Salmonella. Poultry samples were also cultured for Campylobacter. Some labs also pulled samples of meat and poultry to test for E. coli and Enterococcus.
The report highlighted a number of findings that may reinforce what many public health advocates have been arguing for years: that antibiotic use in agriculture is contributing to drug resistance in bacteria.  The NARMS report pointed out that third-generation cephalosporin resistance rose in chicken breasts (10 to 34.5 percent) and ground turkey (8.1 to 16.3 percent) isolates from 2002 to 2010.

NARMS Report
 

 

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Posted in Antibiotic Resistance, Campylobacter, E.coli, Enterobacteriaceae, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Microbiology, Pathogen, Salmonella

Japanese Food Poisoning Statistics – Higher than Government Statistics

Posted on March 5, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Mainichi Daily News

The actual number of bacteria-related foodborne illness incidents in Japan could be hundreds of times more than what official government statistics show, a recent report indicates.

The report, compiled by a Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare study group comprised of researchers, estimates that the actual number of bacteria-related food poisoning incidents between 2005 and 2009 ranged from 36 to 715 times more than those described in official government statistics.

The study group estimates that in 2006, for example, there were a total of 1,641,396 “Campylobacter” bacteria-related food poisoning incidents — some 715 times more than the 2,297 cases reported by the health ministry for the same year. Furthermore, in all studied time periods, the actual cases of food poisoning related to the same bacteria type — which is usually found in raw meat — are estimated at over 400 times more than those described in official governmental statistics.

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Posted in Bacteria, Campylobacter, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Illness, Food Safety, Food Testing, Microbiology, outbreak, Pathogen

Dutch Campylobacter Study

Posted on February 29, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Emerging Infectious Disease

Abstract

In the Netherlands in 2003, an outbreak of avian influenza in poultry resulted in extensive culling, especially of layer hens. Concurrently, human campylobacteriosis cases decreased, particularly in the culling area. These observations raise the hypothesis that Campylobacter spp. dissemination from poultry farms or slaughterhouses might contribute to human campylobacteriosis.

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Posted in Campylobacter, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Testing, Pathogen

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Sampling Frequency for Pathogens- Very Low!

Posted on February 23, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Food Poisoning Bulletin

In Pennsylvania, where a raw milk Campylobacter outbreak has sickened at least 77 people during the last month, dairies – even those selling raw milk, are only required to test for pathogens twice a year, according to Penn State Food Safety, a blog by the Penn State College of Agricultural Services.

Pasteurisation kills harmful pathogens, but raw milk is unpasteurized and can sicken consumers if tainted. Since 2006, there have been seven raw milk outbreaks involving five or more people, sickening 284 Pennsylvanians. In addition, there were nine clusters of five or fewer cases during that same period.

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Posted in Campylobacter, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Safety, Food Testing, Microbiology, Pathogen

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US Raw Milk – Campylobacter

Posted on February 19, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Campylobacter Blog 

Your Family Cow Campylobacter Outbreak the number ill in the campylobacter outbreak has now reportedly risen to 77.

Food Poisoning Bulletin

The state of California is investigating Claravale Farm for the possibility that its raw milk was contaminated with Campylobacter. Last week, the dairy stopped distributing its products to the stores that sell it. Raw milk and raw milk products are legally available in California

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Posted in Campylobacter, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Microbiology, outbreak, Pathogen

US – Raw Milk Debate – Campylobacter

Posted on February 16, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Food Safety News

An additional five confirmed infections have brought the total number of Campylobacter illnesses to 76 in an outbreak linked to raw milk from Your Family Cow dairy in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, the Pennsylvania Department of Health said Wednesday. At least 9 people have been hospitalized.

Food Safety News

The order of a federal judge has finally shut down Rainbow Acres Farm, the raw milk dairy located near Washington D.C. in Pennsylvania’s Amish County.

It ends a nasty confrontation between Dan and Rachel Allgyer, Amish dairy farmers with operations based in Pennsylvania where commercial sales of raw milk are legal, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which caught Rainbow making deliveries inside Maryland and the District of Columbia.
 
The heartland states of Iowa and Indiana are entertaining changes to their raw milk laws, but with far differing approaches.
 
In Iowa, which is bordered by Minnesota, Illinois, Missouri, Nebraska and South Dakota, lawmakers are considering allowing on-farm sales to make the state’s approach more consistent with its neighbors.

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Posted in Campylobacter, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Microbiology, outbreak, Pathogen

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Campylobacter Research

Posted on February 16, 2012 by | 3 comments

The Poultry Site 

Eliminating the most common cause of food poisoning from the food chain is the aim of new research funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) and the world-leading UK-based poultry breeding company Aviagen.

 Campylobacter is responsible for more than 300,000 cases of food poisoning a year in    England and Wales and is estimated to cost the UK economy up to £600M a year. It is usually passed to humans via poultry meat which has not been cooked or handled properly. While good hygiene and thorough cooking kills the bug, preventing it entering the food chain in the first instance woul dramatically reduce the risk of infection. To this end, BBSRC and Aviagen have awarded Scottish researchers £1.3M to map genes responsible for resistance to the bug with the view to being able to breed Campylobacter-resistant chickens in the future.

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Posted in Campylobacter, Food Safety, Food Technology, Food Testing, Microbiology

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Controlling Toxoplasma in Pork

Posted on February 13, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Meating Place.com

This the second article in a five-part series analyzing the most prevalent pathogen-food combinations in the United States. Using CDC and USDA data, researchers at the University of Florida’s Emerging Pathogens Institute identified – for the first time – which pathogens and which foods cause the most illness in the United States. The series is exploring the following five pathogen-food combinations: campylobacter in poultry; toxoplasma in pork; toxoplasma in beef; listeria in deli meats; and salmonella in poultry. Each article offers strategic insights into the food safety issue of each of those five combinations, identifying what makes them such a threat – and offering solutions to combat them.

It doesn’t carry the regulatory weight of E. coli, and it hasn’t grabbed headlines the way Salmonella has, but Toxoplasma in pork – and the illness Toxoplasmosis – is a growing threat, the third leading cause of death from foodborne illness worldwide. A parasite with properties similar to Trichinella spiralis (trichinae), it can cause havoc in certain processed meats that have little thermal processing, but it is particular a threat to fresh meats.

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Posted in Campylobacter, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Microbiology, Pathogen, Toxoplasmosis