Category Archives: Eurofins Laboratories

Texas Firm Recalls Beef Sausage Products Due To Possible Listeria Contamination

Posted on March 22, 2012 by KSW | Leave a comment

WASHINGTON, March 21, 2012 – Southside Market & BBQ, an Elgin, Texas establishment, is recalling approximately 2,373 pounds of ready-to-eat beef sausage products that may have been contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today.

The following products are subject to recall:

16 oz. packages of “Southside Market & BBQ Original Beef Sausage,” Lot # 065-E
16 oz. and 48 oz. packages of “Southside Market & BBQ Original Beef Sausage,” Lot #’s 065-A, 065-B, 065-C, and 065-D
16 oz. packages of “Southside Market & BBQ 1882 Hot Recipe Beef Sausage,” Lot # 065-D

FSIS and the company have received no reports of illness due to consumption of these products. Anyone concerned about an illness should contact a health care provider.

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Posted in Bacteria, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Inspections, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Microbiology, Pathogen, Recall

US – Hens Fed on Salmonella Contaminated Feed – Rat Droppings

Posted on March 22, 2012 by KSW | 1 comment

Washington State

OLYMPIA — The Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) recommends against eating any eggs produced by Daizen Farms of Burlington, WA. The eggs were produced by hens that ate feed contaminated with rodent droppings. Laboratory testing confirms that the feed contained Salmonella.

The eggs were also packaged under insanitary conditions on the farm. WSDA inspectors observed rodent droppings inside an egg-washing machine during use.

To date, public health officials have linked no human illnesses to the eggs. Consumers are reminded to thoroughly cook all eggs, regardless of source, to reduce the risk of food borne illness.

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Posted in Bacteria, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Inspections, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Foodborne Illness, Microbiology, Pathogen, Salmonella

Food Poisoning Could Have Lifelong Consequences

Posted on March 22, 2012 by KSW | Leave a comment

Two stories from the Mail Online, one about the long term consequences of foodborne illness and the other about Selfridges ‘Raw Milk’ sales.

Mail Online

Stomach bugs may not only make you feel miserable at the time. Salmonella, E coli and other types of food poisoning may have lifelong consequences.

Studies have shown that people caught up in food poisoning outbreaks are more likely to develop a host of lengthy illnesses, including diabetes, arthritis, kidney failure, high blood pressure and even heart attacks and strokes.

Some, such as kidney damage thought to be caused by powerful poisons released by the bugs and arthritis triggered by a faulty immune response, occur within weeks. Others, such as high blood pressure, take years to appear.

Mail Online – Raw Milk

Upmarket store Selfridges has been accused of potentially putting customers at risk and breaking the law by selling ‘raw’ milk.

It is selling the milk, produced on an organic farm in Sussex, from a vending machine and insists it is hugely popular and regularly sells out.

Many traditionalists enjoy raw milk, believing it tastes nicer and may even be better for them.

However the Government’s Food Standards Agency (FSA) and its experts insist that raw milk, which is not heat-treated or pasteurised to kill off harmful bugs, is a public health threat.

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Posted in Bacteria, Campylobacter, E.coli, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Listeria monocytogenes, Microbiology, Pathogen, Salmonella

Euro 2012 – Clostridium botulinum Warning

Posted on March 22, 2012 by KSW | Leave a comment

Irish Independant

Irish fans planning to travel to the Euro 2012 championships have been warned about the dangers of botulism.

Poland has a particularly high incidence of the serious food poisoning, which can be food-borne if the dish is improperly canned or preserved.

Up to 12,000 fans are expected to travel to the championship where rip-off hotel prices could be the least of their worries.

The World Health Organisation (WHO), which has issued a health checklist for football fans who plan to follow their national teams to the championships in June and July, has warned of the perils of improperly prepared food.

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Posted in Bacteria, Clostridium botulinum, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Illness, Food Safety, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Microbiology, Pathogen

Tagged soccer

CIFA – More on the E.coli O157 Recall – Beef

Posted on March 21, 2012 by KSW | Leave a comment

CIFA Fact Sheet

CIFA Recall List

CIFA Article

To date, the CFIA has provided details of over 135 affected products under various brand names and codes that may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7. These products have been distributed nationally.

As the CFIA continues its investigation, it will immediately advise consumers if additional affected products are found.

The affected products can also be identified by the Establishment number that appears on the packages, cartons or cases. The products made at this facility bear Establishment number (EST) 761.

The affected products involved in this recall may be identified by one of the following codes:

bearing a Best Before date from BB 2012 JA 01 up to and including to BB 2013 FE 15;
bearing a production code with a format of 11 JL 01 up to and including 12 FE 15;
bearing a 5 digit lot code where the last four digits are 1831 or greater.

If you have any of the affected products, or have products that you are not certain falls under the recall, do not consume these products.

You should throw out the product or contact the point of purchase about their return policy.

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Posted in Bacteria, CIFA, E.coli, E.coli O157, EHEC, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Microbiology, Pathogen, Recall, STEC

NZ – Campylobacter 200 Cases

Posted on March 21, 2012 by KSW | Leave a comment

The Press NZ

Cases of campylobacter have been on the rise since December, hitting a peak last month, with almost 200 reported cases in Canterbury and the West Coast.

In some weeks, the number of reported cases has been double that of weeks in previous years.

Canterbury District Health Board (CDHB) medical officer of health Ramon Pink said campylobacter rates in Canterbury used to be “right up there with global rates”.

“Over the last few years a lot of work has gone into reducing those rates and we had definitely seen a decline but, for some reason, this year numbers have increased again,” he said.

“This rise could be due to a number of things – maybe because of the earthquakes and subsequent damage to infrastructure, but I am just speculating.”

The bacterial disease is transmitted from contaminated food or water and can infect the gastrointestinal tract and cause diarrhoea, fever and cramps.

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

Tagged science

Luciferase Pathogen Detection

Posted on March 21, 2012 by KSW | Leave a comment

Food Safety News

Biology researchers in the United Kingdom have developed a device that can detect foodborne pathogens using a variant of a simple, seemingly unlikely chemical: Firefly luciferase, the enzyme that makes fireflies’ abdomens light up.

The device, called “Bioluminescent Assay in Real-Time” (BART), pinpoints harmful bacteria such as Salmonella and Listeria on food by activating the luciferase in their presence, converting the bacteria’s DNA sequences into distinguishable patterns of light.

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Posted in Bacteria, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Technology, Food Testing, Listeria monocytogenes, Microbiology, Pathogen, Salmonella

FSAI – Recall – Listeria monocytogenes –

Posted on March 20, 2012 by KSW | Leave a comment

FSAI

Millstream Ltd. is recalling the below batches of ‘Millstream Oak Smoked Salmon’ due to Listeria monocytogenes. No other products are affected by this recall. The implicated batches were distributed to a small number of restaurants and a retailer in the Dublin and Wicklow region. A point-of-sale notice informing customers of this recall should be displayed in the retail shop.

Millstream Oak Smoked Salmon, pack sizes: 100g, 200g and sides.
Batch Code:	Batch: 44318, Best Before Date: 02.04.2012 and Batch: 44203, Best Before Date: 13.03.2012.

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Posted in Bacteria, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, FSAI, Listeria, Listeria monocytogenes, Microbiology, Pathogen, Recall

Tagged food, fsai

Ottawa Salmonella Outbreak – Now 33 Cases

Posted on March 20, 2012 by KSW | Leave a comment

Food Safety News

There now are 37 Salmonella infections in Ottawa, most linked to a catering company that served meals to schools and day care centers, the city’s public health department reported Monday.

The outbreak total includes 33 children, ranging in age from 15 months to 18 years old. Three required hospitalization but have since been released. The children all attended one of seven schools or a single day care center.

Two of four ill adults appear to be part of the outbreak; two cases may be unrelated, the health department said in a news release.

Still no official word on what caused the outbreak of Salmonella poisoning, although the owner of The Lunch Lady catering company, implicated as the source, said earlier that investigators were looking at ground beef used to tacos and lasagna.