Category Archives: CDC

Research – Multistate nontyphoidal Salmonella and Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli outbreaks linked to international travel—United States, 2017–2020

Posted on February 9, 2024 by | Leave a comment

Cambridge.org

Abstract

Enteric bacterial infections are common among people who travel internationally. During 2017–2020, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention investigated 41 multistate outbreaks of nontyphoidal Salmonella and Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli linked to international travel. Resistance to one or more antimicrobial agents was detected in at least 10% of isolates in 16 of 30 (53%) nontyphoidal Salmonella outbreaks and 8 of 11 (73%) Shiga toxin-producing E. coli outbreaks evaluated by the National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System. At least 10% of the isolates in 14 nontyphoidal Salmonella outbreaks conferred resistance to one or more of the clinically significant antimicrobials used in human medicine. This report describes the epidemiology and antimicrobial resistance patterns of these travel-associated multistate outbreaks. Investigating illnesses among returned travellers and collaboration with international partners could result in the implementation of public health interventions to improve hygiene practices and food safety standards and to prevent illness and spread of multidrug-resistant organisms domestically and internationally.

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Posted in Antibiotic Resistance, antimicrobial resistance, Antimicrobials, CDC, food bourne outbreak, Food Microbiology Research, foodborne outbreak, foodbourne outbreak, outbreak, Research, Salmonella

USA- Salmonella Outbreak Linked to Charcuterie Meats

Posted on January 8, 2024 by | Leave a comment

CDC

Fast Facts
  • Illnesses: 24
  • Hospitalizations: 5
  • Deaths: 0
  • States: 14
  • Recall: Yes
  • Investigation status: Active   (first posted on January 5, 2024)

Recalled product image

Recalled Food
Salmonella was identified in an unopened sample of “Busseto Foods Charcuterie Sampler Prosciutto, Sweet Soppressata, and Dry Coppa” collected by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture as a part of the investigation. Testing is being conducted to determine if the Salmonella in the sample is the outbreak strain.

On January 3, 2024, Fratelli Beretta USA, Inc., recalled approximately 11,097 pounds of Busseto Foods brand ready-to-eat charcuterie meat products.

Busseto Charcuterie Sampler
18-oz. plastic tray packages of “Busseto Foods Charcuterie Sampler Prosciutto, Sweet Soppressata, and Dry Coppa”
LOT Code L075330300 and “best by” date on April 27, 2024. This product is sold as a twin pack with two 9-oz. packages.
The products have the establishments numbers “EST. 7543B” inside the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s mark of inspection and “EST. #47967” on the package. See recall notice for more details.
These items were shipped to Sam’s Club distribution centers in Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Texas.
What You Should Do
Check your fridge for recalled products. Do not eat them. Throw them away or return them to where you bought them.
Wash surfaces and containers that may have touched the recalled product using hot soapy water or a dishwasher.
Call your healthcare provider right away if you have any of these severe Salmonella symptoms:
Diarrhea and a fever higher than 102°F
Diarrhea for more than 3 days that is not improving
Bloody diarrhea
So much vomiting that you cannot keep liquids down
Signs of dehydration, such as:
Not peeing much
Dry mouth and throat
Feeling dizzy when standing up
What Businesses Should Do
Do not sell or serve the recalled “Busseto Foods Charcuterie Sampler Prosciutto, Sweet Soppressata, and Dry Coppa.”
Wash and sanitize items and surfaces that may have come in contact with recalled products.

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Posted in CDC, food contamination, food handler, Food Hazard, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Pathogen, Food Quality, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Safety Management, Food Safety Regulations, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Illness, Salmonella

CDC – Protect your pregnancy from Listeria.

Posted on December 22, 2023 by | Leave a comment

CDC

Listeria illness is rare. Every year, 4 in 100,000 pregnant people in the U.S. get sick with Listeria.

Illustration of an unborn baby inside the body.
But it can harm your baby. Sadly, 1 in 4 pregnant people who get this illness lose their pregnancy or their baby shortly after birth. That’s because the germ can spread to your baby and harm them while you are pregnant, even if you don’t feel very sick.

See more information at the link above.

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Posted in CDC, Food Microbiology Research, Listeria, Listeria monocytogenes, Research

USA – Outbreak Investigation of Salmonella: Onions (October 2023) – CDC Outbreak is Over

Posted on December 14, 2023 by | Leave a comment

FDA

Sample Product Image from the Outbreak Investigation of Salmonella Related to Onions (October 2023)

Product

Recalled Gills Onions-brand diced yellow onions, diced onions & celery, diced mirepoix, and diced red onions with use-by dates in August 2023.

The US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) investigation is complete; the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) declares the outbreak over.

Stores Affected

  • Recalled Gills Onions were sold to foodservice and institutions nationwide and in Canada. The firm has directly notified foodservice customers who received recalled product.
  • Recalled product was sold to retailers in Arizona, California, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington.

The FDA and CDC, in collaboration with state and local partners, investigated an outbreak of Salmonella infections linked to recalled diced onions under the Gills Onions brand name.

As part of this investigation, FDA collected multiple water, environmental, and product samples from the farm that supplied the contaminated onions to Gills Onions. Six of the samples, three water and three environmental, were positive for Salmonella spp. Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS) analysis confirmed that the strain of Salmonella found in isolates associated with three of the samples matched the same strain of Salmonella causing illnesses in this outbreak. Additional Salmonella isolates from the samples were detected, and CDC identified people who got sick with these strains of Salmonella. FDA and CDC partners reviewed the available data; however, there was not enough epidemiologic or traceback evidence to implicate a product or source of contamination for those illnesses.

As of December 4, 2023, CDC announced that the outbreak is over. CDC reports a total of 80 illnesses in 23 states. There has been a total of 18 hospitalizations and one death associated with this incident. The last illness onset was November 11, 2023. FDA’s investigation is complete.

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Posted in CDC, FDA, food bourne outbreak, Food Illness, Foodborne Illness, foodborne outbreak, foodbourne outbreak, Illness, outbreak, Salmonella, WGS

Research -High technology is the key to detecting foodborne outbreaks over space and time

Posted on December 12, 2023 by | Leave a comment

Lex Blog

Most people think of foodborne illness outbreaks as spanning a few days or weeks. But, with current technology, disease detectives can find patients of a single outbreak spread across several years and multiple states.

That is the case with an ongoing outbreak of Listeria illnesses linked to fresh peaches that began in 2018. So far, 11 patients have been identified, most recently found in August this year. One of the patients died. Recent recalls of peaches, nectarines, and plums have been initiated while public health officials continue investigating the outbreak.

The links between people sickened in the outbreak this year and the initial patient in 2018 were made possible using whole genome sequencing (WGS). Whole genome sequencing has been likened to fingerprinting used in criminal investigations, but WGS allows the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to look at millions of pieces of data.

“WGS examines more than 4.5 million ‘letters’ of the genetic code in disease-causing bacteria such as Salmonella. Bacteria closely related by WGS are more likely to have originated from the same source than more distantly related bacteria,” said John Besser, who retired in 2019 as Deputy Chief of the Enteric Diseases Laboratory Branch at the CDC. He continues to work on CDC-related projects through the Association of Public Health Laboratories.

“Ill persons in a WGS cluster will likely have shared exposure, such as a contaminated food product. By focusing on WGS clusters, investigators can detect outbreaks when they are small, even if cases are dispersed over multiple states or widely separated in time.”

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Posted in CDC, food bourne outbreak, Food Illness, Food Microbiology Research, Food Technology, Foodborne Illness, foodborne outbreak, foodbourne outbreak, Illness, outbreak, Research, Technology, WGS

USA – Salmonella Outbreak Linked to Cantaloupes – Update

Posted on December 8, 2023 by | Leave a comment

CDC

Fast Facts
  • Illnesses: 230   (113 new)
  • Hospitalizations: 96   (35 new)
  • Deaths: 3   (1 new)
  • States: 38   (4 new)
  • Recall: Yes
  • Investigation status: Active   (first posted on November 17, 2023)

CDC is concerned about this outbreak because the illnesses are severe and people in long-term care facilities and childcare centers have gotten sick. Do not eat pre-cut cantaloupes if you don’t know whether Malichita or Rudy brand cantaloupes were used.

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Posted in CDC, Death, food bourne outbreak, food death, Food Illness, Foodborne Illness, Foodborne Illness Death, foodborne outbreak, foodbourne outbreak, Illness, outbreak, Salmonella, Salmonella Cantaloupes

USA – FDA jumps in on Listeria Outbreak linked to HMC Peaches, Plums and Nectarines after 10 sick and 1 dead

Posted on November 22, 2023 by | Leave a comment

Food Poison Journal

The FDA and CDC, in collaboration with state and local partners, are investigating a multistate outbreak of Listeria monocytogenes infections linked to peaches, plums, and nectarines (stone fruit).

Total Illnesses: 11
Hospitalizations: 10
Deaths: 1
Last Sample Collection: August 16, 2023
States with Cases: California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Michigan, Ohio
Product Distribution: Nationwide

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Posted in CDC, FDA, food bourne outbreak, Food Illness, Foodborne Illness, Foodborne Illness Death, foodborne outbreak, foodbourne outbreak, Illness, Listeria, Listeria monocytogenes, outbreak

USA – Victor Dog Food Salmonella Outbreak Sickens Infants

Posted on November 13, 2023 by | Leave a comment

Food Poisoning Bulletin

The Victor Dog Food Salmonella Kiambu outbreak has sickened at least seven people, mostly infants, in seven states, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Several brands and types of dog and pet food have been recalled in association with this outbreak. The recalling firm is Mid America Pet Food.

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Posted in CDC, Illness, outbreak, Pet Food, Pet Food Illness, Pet Food Recall, Pet Food Salmonella, Pet Food Testing, Salmonella

USA – FDA and CDC Investigate Cases of Salmonella Linked to Pet Food Made by Mid America Pet Food; Multiple Brands Recalled

Posted on November 10, 2023 by | Leave a comment

FDA

Fast Facts

  • The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, in collaboration with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and state partners, is investigating seven human cases of Salmonella Kiambu infection potentially associated with pet food made by Mid America Pet Food.
  • Mid America Pet Food has voluntarily recalled all the pet food brands it manufactured with a best by date before 10/31/2024, which include Victor, Eagle Mountain, Wayne Feeds and two varieties of Member’s Mark pet foods. These products include both dog and cat foods and were sold nationwide in retail stores and online. See the full list of products below.
  • This recall expands previous recalls by the firm on September 3, 2023 and October 30, 2023.
  • CDC reports that, as of November 1, 2023, seven people infected with the strain of Salmonella have been reported from seven states (see map). Six of seven cases reported were in children one year of age or younger. Five of these cases reported exposure to dogs and three reported feeding Victor pet food to their pets. Illnesses started on dates ranging from January 14, 2023, to August 19, 2023 (see timeline). One person was hospitalized, and no deaths have been reported.
  • A retail sample of Victor brand Hi-Pro Plus dry dog food collected by the South Carolina State Department of Agriculture and analyzed by the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control matches the strain of Salmonella found in the seven ill people.
  • If consumers have any pet food on the list below, they are advised to throw it away in a secure container. Do not feed it to your pets or other animals. Do not donate the food.
  • Clean and disinfect all pet supplies and surfaces that the food or pet had contact with.
  • Salmonella can make both people and pets sick. People with symptoms of Salmonella infection should consult their health care providers. Consult a veterinarian if your pet has symptoms of Salmonella infection. See additional symptom information below.
  • The investigation is ongoing, and the FDA will update this advisory as appropriate.

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Posted in Animal Feed Salmonella, Animal Feed Testing, CDC, FDA, Pet Food, Pet Food Recall, Pet Food Salmonella, Pet Food Testing, Salmonella

Research – Resistant Salmonella infections linked to worse outcomes

Posted on October 19, 2023 by | Leave a comment

CIDRAP

kswfoodworld Salmonella

Infections caused by Salmonella with any antibiotic resistance are associated with more severe clinical outcomes, including hospitalization and death, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) researchers reported yesterday in Clinical Infectious Diseases.

Using epidemiologic data from the Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network (FoodNet) and antimicrobial resistance data from the National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System (NARMS), researchers from the CDC’s Division of Foodborne, Waterborne, and Environmental Diseases examined outcomes in patients with nontyphoidal Salmonella infections from 2004 through 2018. They compared outcomes for resistant Salmonella infections with those caused by non-resistant Salmonella before and after adjusting for age, state, race/ethnicity, international travel, outbreak association, and isolate serotype or source.

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Posted in Animal Feed, Antibacterial, Antibiotic Resistance, antimicrobial resistance, Antimicrobials, CDC, Food Microbiology Research, Research, Salmonella