Category Archives: E.coli

UK – Curry Leaves cause Salmonella Outbreak 400 People

Posted on June 21, 2013 by | Leave a comment

The Guardian

Uncooked curry leaves in a chutney left more than 400 people who ate at a street food festival with diarrhoea and vomiting or salmonella poisoning, health officials have found.

The leaves were contaminated with several different bacteria, experts found, which led to 29 confirmed cases of salmonella at the Street Spice festival in Newcastle in February and March.

An investigation by Public Health England (PHE) and Newcastle city council found 25 of the 29 cases had developed a strain of salmonella never found in people or food in Britain before.

According to an official report, further laboratory analysis suggested other organisms may also have caused illness including E coli and shigella.

Some of the 413 affected were found to have more than one of these infections at the same time.

No one will face prosecution because there was seen to be a lack of clear advice about the dangers of using raw curry leaves in recipes, and in general hygiene levels at the three-day event were good.

Leave a comment

Posted in Bacteria, E.coli, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Health Protection England, Hygiene, Illness, Laboratory, Microbiology, outbreak, Pathogen, Poisoning, Recall, Salmonella

Tagged

RASFF Alerts – Aflatoxin in Groundnuts – Listeria monocytogenes in Smoked Salmon – STEC E.coli – Beef

Posted on June 19, 2013 by | Leave a comment

RASFF – Aflatoxins (B1 = 11 µg/kg – ppb) in groundnuts from Egypt in Slovenia

RASFF – Listeria monocytogenes (150; 100; 60; 50 CFU/g) in smoked salmon from Poland in Germany

RASFF – Shigatoxin-producing Escherichia coli (presence /25g) in chilled bovine meat (Bos taurus) from Brazil in the Netherlands

Leave a comment

Posted in Aflatoxin, Bacteria, E.coli, E.coli O157, EHEC, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Listeria, Listeria monocytogenes, Microbiology, Moulds, Mycotoxin, Pathogen, RASFF, Recall, STEC, Uncategorized

Tagged , , , , ,

USA – Recall Raw Ground Beef

Posted on June 19, 2013 by | Leave a comment

E.coli BlogEcoli Istock

National Beef Packing Co., a Liberal, Kan., establishment, is recalling approximately 22,737 pounds of raw ground beef products that may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today.

The problem was discovered through routine FSIS monitoring which confirmed a positive result for E.coli O157:H7. An investigation determined the firm was the sole supplier of the source materials used to produce the positive product. FSIS and the company have received no reports of illnesses associated with consumption of these products.

Leave a comment

Posted in Bacteria, E.coli, E.coli O157, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Laboratory, Microbiology, Pathogen, Recall, Salmonella

Tagged , ,

USA – Restaurant Linked to 10 E.coli Cases

Posted on June 16, 2013 by | Leave a comment

E.coli Blog

According to the Chicago Tribune, the DuPage County Health Department closed an unnamed Lombard restaurant in connection with the investigation into four confirmed cases of E. coli in people admitted to a county hospital this week, officials said today.

Jason Gerwig, a public information officer for the DuPage County Health Department, said his agency is looking at a Lombard restaurant as a possible source for the outbreak, and said the restaurant had been temporarily closed at 5 p.m. Friday as part of the investigation. Gerwig said the total number of cases confirmed or under investigation is about 10.

The four confirmed cases were all hospitalized at Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove, officials said Friday. Jim Silvestri, a spokesman for Good Samaritan, said Friday that eight people had come to the hospital feeling ill and that four had been admitted.

Leave a comment

Posted in Bacteria, E.coli, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Microbiology, Pathogen

Tagged ,

USA – Boil Water Notice in Florida – E.coli

Posted on June 16, 2013 by | 1 comment

Food Poisoning Bulletin

Broward County has issued a boil water notice for its water customers, since E. coli has been found in the municipal system. The cities affected by this notice include the City of Dania Beach, the City of Hallandale Beach, the City of Hollywood, and Broward County WWS customers in service area 3A and 3BC. That affects parts of Dania Beach, Hollywood, Miramar, West Park, Pembroke Park, and Pembroke Pines including the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.

Do not drink the water without boiling it first. Bring all water, including the water you use to wash your hands and use in the kitchen, to a rolling boil. Let it boil for one minute, then let it cool before using it. Bottled water can be used instead of tap water if you prefer. Only use boiled or bottled water for drinking, making ice, preparing food, and washing dishes until further notice.

1 Comment

Posted in Bacteria, Boil Water Notice, E.coli, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Microbiology, Pathogen, Water

Tagged , , ,

Research – STEC E.coli Survival in Water

Posted on June 14, 2013 by | 1 comment

HACCP EuropaE__Coli_0157

A toxin dangerous to humans may help E. coli fend off aquatic predators, enabling strains of E. coli that produce the toxin to survive longer in lake water than benign counterparts, a new study from researchers from the University at Buffalo and Mercyhurst University finds.

1 Comment

Posted in Bacteria, E.coli, E.coli O157, Food Hygiene, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Microbiology, Pathogen, Research, STEC, Toxin

Tagged ,

USA – E.coli Case

Posted on June 14, 2013 by | Leave a comment

E.coli BlogEcoli Istock

Wellesley Health Department (WHD) received notice by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health’s (MDPH) surveillance system on June 12, 2013 of a case of E. coli in a Wellesley resident.

The origin of the cases’ illness is being investigated.

Rumors have been circulating that the cause of the illnesses has been linked to a local supermarket. At this point, no local supermarkets are a focus of the investigation.

Leave a comment

Posted in Bacteria, E.coli, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Hygiene, Laboratory, Microbiology, Pathogen

Tagged

Research – Irrigation Water – Coliforms – E.coli

Posted on June 10, 2013 by | Leave a comment

Ingenta ConnectWaterfall

Irrigation water is considered a potential source of preharvest pathogen contamination of vegetables. Hence, several organizations have recommended microbiological standards for water used to irrigate edible plants. The purpose of this study was to determine the strength of association between microbial quality indicators (coliforms and Escherichia coli) in irrigation water and on irrigated vegetables. Data analyzed included original results from a cross-sectional study conducted in the Midwestern United States during summer 2009 and information presented in two previously published studies performed in France and Portugal to investigate microbial quality of irrigation water and watered produce. In the cross-sectional study, repetitive PCR (rep-PCR) was used to characterize genetic relatedness of E. coli isolates from water and vegetables. No significant correlations were found between fecal indicators on leafy greens (lettuce and parsley, n = 91) or fruit (tomatoes and green peppers, n = 22) and those found in irrigation water used in the cross-sectional study (P > 0.40) or in the previously published data sets (data set 1: lettuce and waste irrigation water, n = 15, P > 0.40; data set 2: lettuce and irrigation water, n = 32, P = 0.06). Rep-PCR banding patterns of E. coli strains were all distinguishable among the pairs of E. coli isolates recovered from produce and irrigation water on the same farm. From the available data, the concentration of indicator organisms based on a single measure of irrigation water quality was not associated with the presence of these indicators on produce. In the absence of additional information, the use of a single microbial water quality parameter as an indicator of produce safety is of limited value for predicting the safety of the produce.

Leave a comment

Posted in Bacteria, Coliforms, E.coli, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Microbiology, Pathogen, Research, Water

USA – Is Raw Milk Good for You ? – Recall E.coli

Posted on June 7, 2013 by | Leave a comment

E.coli BlogEcoli Istock

Raw milk products from Pure Éire dairy in Othello are being recalled due to the possibility of E. coli contamination.

Dairy owner Richard Smith said the company is voluntarily recalling its organic raw milk products dated June 8 and later. The recalled milk is sold in half-gallon glass and plastic containers and one-gallon plastic containers.

Settler’s Country Market is the only retailer in Grant and Adams counties that sells the recalled milk products

 

Leave a comment

Posted in E.coli, Food Hygiene, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Microbiology, Pathogen, Recall

Tagged ,

Canada – Research Into E.coli O157 XL Outbreak 2012

Posted on June 6, 2013 by | Leave a comment

Food Safety

The Panel members were appointed by the Governor in Council to undertake an independent review of the beef recall that occurred at XL Foods Inc.‘s plant at Brooks, Alberta between September and October 2012, and to submit a report to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food.

We were asked to establish how the contamination occurred and, moreover, how the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA, or Agency), its food safety partners, and XL Foods Inc. responded to the situation. Lastly, we were tasked with providing recommendations that would address any findings or conclusions that we had made regarding these matters. We note that such findings or conclusions do not address civil or criminal liability; the standards that we are applying are not legal ones.

Over the course of several weeks, the Panel met with dozens of stakeholders. These included beef producers and processors, health authorities and academics, the retail industry, and union representatives for both the company and the Agency.

In this regard, we were left with a single overarching impression: everyone we interviewed expressed a keen desire to ensure that the food Canadians eat is safe. And they all wanted to be considered partners in the pursuit of that goal.

Leave a comment

Posted in Bacteria, CFIA, E.coli, E.coli O157, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Hygiene, Illness, Laboratory, Microbiology, outbreak, Pathogen, Research

Tagged , ,