Category Archives: food death

USA – Woman’s estate wins big award from Big Olaf in wrongful Listeria death lawsuit – $4 Million

Posted on January 27, 2023 | Leave a comment

Herald Tribune

SARASOTA — The estate of a 79-year-old Illinois woman who died after eating listeria-tainted ice cream from a Sarasota creamery was awarded $4 million by a U.S. District Court judge in Tampa this week.

The ruling came Tuesday in the wrongful death suit filed last year by Bill Marler, a nationally known foodborne illness attorney who represented the estate of Mary Billman. Marler was retained following Billman’s death on Jan. 29, 2022, and the listeria outbreak identified by federal and state regulators last summer that gained national attention.

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Posted in Death, food bourne outbreak, food death, Food Illness, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, Foodborne Illness, Foodborne Illness Death, foodborne outbreak, foodbourne outbreak, Illness, Listeria, Listeria monocytogenes, microbial contamination, Microbial growth, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk, outbreak

Switzerland – One died in a Swiss Listeria monocytogenes outbreak traced to smoked fish

Posted on January 18, 2023 | Leave a comment

Food Safety News

Swiss authorities have revealed a Listeria outbreak sickened 20 and killed one person in 2022.

The Federal Office of Public Health (OFSP), Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office (OSAV), and cantonal, or regional, authorities detected an outbreak of listeriosis in July 2022 and identified smoked trout as the source.

In early July, an unusually high number of Listeria monocytogenes cases were reported to OFSP. Whole genome sequencing (WGS) confirmed they were linked.

As part of an investigation carried out with OFSP, patients were interviewed and evidence pointed to smoked trout produced by one company.

Cantonal food authorities carried out an inspection of the firm in the canton of Thurgovie, also known as Thurgau, which found the bacteria in smoked trout and in the production environment. WGS matched the isolates from food samples and patients, confirming the link.

In July, smoked fish from the company Kundelfingerhof was withdrawn from sale and recalled from stores such as Coop, Migros, and Volg.

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Posted in food bourne outbreak, food death, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, Foodborne Illness Death, foodborne outbreak, foodbourne outbreak, Listeria, Listeria monocytogenes, microbial contamination, Microbial growth, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk, outbreak

France – Brittany Cupped Oysters – Norovirus

Posted on January 16, 2023 | Leave a comment

Gov france

Identification information of the recalled product

  • Product category Feed
  • Product subcategory Fishery and aquaculture products
  • Product brand name Unbranded
  • Model names or references See attached file
  • Identification of products
    Batch
    see attached product list
  • Products List BILAN_REMINDER_-_Tracabilite_-_13_01_2023.pdfEnclosed
  • Packaging see Attachment
  • Marketing start/end date From 28/12/2022 to 29/12/2022
  • Storage temperature Product to be stored in the refrigerator
  • Health mark EN 56-034-009CE
  • Further information see Attachment
  • Geographic area of ​​sale Whole France
  • Distributors Leclerc – System U – Intermarché in – Mericq
  • List of points of saleBILAN_REMINDER_-_Tracabilite_-_13_01_2023.pdf

Practical information regarding the recall

  • Reason for recall Imposed by prefectural decree closing the area
  • Risks incurred by the consumer Norovirus

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Posted in food contamination, food death, food handler, Food Hazard, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Pathogen, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Safety Management, Food Testing, Food Virus, Norovirus, Norovirus Oysters, Virus

Quebec – Notice not to consume feta-style cheese prepared and sold by Fromagerie Carpati inc. – E.coli

Posted on December 23, 2022 | Leave a comment

Quebec

QUEBEC CITY , Dec. 22 2022 /CNW Telbec/ – The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPAQ), in collaboration with Fromagerie Carpati inc., located at 5270, route Harwood , in Vaudreuil-Dorion , advises the population not to consume the product indicated in the table below, because analysis results show that this product is likely to contain E. coli bacteria and represents a health risk.

Product name

Format

Affected lot

Feta style cheese

Variable

Units sold until December 22, 2022

The product that is the subject of this warning was offered for sale until December 22, 2022, in several establishments in the province of Quebec. The product came in many forms and was presented in various packaging. It was sold chilled.

The operator is voluntarily recalling the product in question. It has agreed with MAPAQ to issue this warning as a precautionary measure. In addition, people who have this product in their possession are advised not to consume it. They must return it to the establishment where they bought it or throw it away. Even if the affected product shows no signs of tampering or suspicious odors, its consumption may represent a health risk.

It should be noted that no case of illness associated with the consumption of this food has been reported to MAPAQ to date.

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Posted in E.coli, food contamination, food death, food handler, Food Hazard, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Pathogen, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Safety Management, Food Safety Regulations, Food Testing

Estonia improves fish controls after Listeria outbreak

Posted on December 15, 2022 | Leave a comment

Food Safety News

Measures taken by Estonian authorities following a Listeria outbreak have improved the fish control system, according to the European Commission.

A remote DG Sante audit, in October 2020, looked at checks to ensure smoked fish meets microbiological food safety criteria, as well as measures taken by authorities in non-compliances.

Eight Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) reports for Listeria monocytogenes in smoked fishery products from Estonia have been issued since 2015. All but one concerned the same establishment.

A multi-country outbreak of 22 listeriosis cases linked to cold-smoked salmon and trout pointed toward M.V Wool, an Estonian processing company as the manufacturer of these fish products. This was based on traceability information and a match between the outbreak strain and samples on the processing line and in four batches of the final product. Five countries were affected from 2014 to 2019 and five people died.

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Posted in Death, Decontamination Microbial, food bourne outbreak, food death, Food Illness, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Poisoning Death, Foodborne Illness, Foodborne Illness Death, foodborne outbreak, foodbourne outbreak, Illness, Listeria, Listeria monocytogenes, microbial contamination, Microbial growth, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk, outbreak

Shannon Illingworth Explains Why Lettuce and Spinach Keeps Getting Contaminated With E. Coli

Posted on December 10, 2022 | Leave a comment

yahoo finance

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reports that  each year in the United States, 48 million people get sick, 128,000 are hospitalized, and 3,000 die from foodborne diseases.

“Those numbers are staggering and unacceptable,” says Shannon Illingworth, founder of “Know the Grow.”

Illingworth is spreading the word that our nation’s food system is in crisis, and it’s time for people to understand where and how their food was grown.

“That lettuce on your plate may have come from thousands of miles away, picked way ahead of its peak flavor and nutritional value, and may have been exposed to pathogens in dozens of ways during its voyage from seedling to your table,” he said.

According to the CDC, “Germs can contaminate leafy greens at many points before they reach your plate. For example, germs from animal poop can get in irrigation water or fields where vegetables grow. Germs can also get on leafy greens in packing and processing facilities, in trucks used for shipping, from the unwashed hands of food handlers, and in the kitchen.”

Read more at the link above.

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Posted in Decontamination Microbial, food death, Food Illness, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Pathogen, Food Poisoning Death, Foodborne Illness, Foodborne Illness Death, Illness, microbial contamination, Microbial growth, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk, Pathogen, pathogenic

USA – Botulism from food causes the death of a respected outdoorsman from Jackson Hole

Posted on December 5, 2022 | Leave a comment

Food Safety News

Wyoming social media reports the death of 55-year-old Hans Russell, who succumbed to botulism after being conscious but also completely paralyzed for several weeks in a Salt Lake City hospital.

Russell was a popular outdoorsman and river guide in Jackson Hole, WY. His death is blamed on a solo camping trip to Idaho where he consumed a can of soup that was not properly refrigerated. The doctors in Salt Lake City who fought to keep him alive came to believe that the single can of soup was the source of the botulism toxin Russell consumed.

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Posted in Bacterial Toxin, Clostridium, Clostridium botulinum, Death, food death, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Poisoning Death, Food Toxin, microbial contamination, Microbial growth, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk, Toxin

USA – Outbreak Investigation of E. coli O121:H19 Frozen Falafel (October 2022)

Posted on December 2, 2022 | Leave a comment

FDA

The FDA, along with CDC and state and local partners, investigated a multistate outbreak of E. coli O121:H19 infections linked to Earth Grown frozen falafel.

As of December 1, 2022, CDC announced that the outbreak is over. There have been a total of 24 illnesses in six states. The last illness onset was October 24, 2022.

On October 7, 2022, the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development collected Earth Grown frozen falafel for testing from a sick person’s home. Whole Genome Sequencing done at the Michigan Department of Health & Human Services showed that the E. coli strain in the falafel sample was closely related to the strain causing illness in this outbreak.

On October 6, 2022, the manufacturer of Earth Grown frozen falafel, Cuisine Innovations, initiated a voluntary recall. Recalled products include Earth Grown vegan traditional falafel and garlic & herb falafel distributed and sold exclusively by ALDI. Additional information on recalled products is available in the firm’s recall notice.

Recommendation

These items are no longer available for sale but were sold frozen and have a long shelf-life of 18 months, so consumers should check their freezers for any recalled Earth Grown vegan traditional falafel and garlic & herb falafel that was sold by ALDI. If you have recalled frozen falafel in your freezer, do not eat or serve them.

Product Images

Outbreak Investigation E.coli Frozen Falafel October 2022 - Sample Product Images

Map of U.S. Distribution

Outbreak Ecoli Falafel Distribution Map

Case Count Map Provided by CDC

Outbreak Investigation of E. coli O121: Frozen Falafel (October 2022) - CDC Case Count Map as of December 1, 2022

Case Counts

Total Illnesses: 24
Hospitalizations: 5
Deaths: 1
Last illness onset: October 24, 2022
States with Cases: FL (2), IA (2), KS (1), MI (13), OH (1), WI (5)
Product Distribution: Nationwide

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Posted in Death, Decontamination Microbial, E.coli O121, FDA, food bourne outbreak, food death, Food Illness, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Poisoning Death, Foodborne Illness, Foodborne Illness Death, foodborne outbreak, foodbourne outbreak, Illness, microbial contamination, Microbial growth, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk, outbreak, STEC, STEC E.coli

Viet Nam – Mass food poisoning at Nha Trang school caused by Salmonella bacteria

Posted on November 23, 2022 | Leave a comment

VN Express

Health officials confirmed over 600 students of Ischool in Nha Trang in the central province of Khanh Hoa were poisoned with the Salmonella bacteria that is sensitive to most antibiotics.

Khanh Hoa Health Department announced the cause four days after the mass food poisoning case on November 17. Among the victims, a 6-year-old boy died on Sunday en route to a HCMC hospital.

Doctor Doan Uyen Vy, an anti-poison expert of Cho Ray Hospital in HCMC, told VnExpress that Salmonella is a common culprit in many food poisoning cases from mild to severe.

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Posted in Death, Decontamination Microbial, food bourne outbreak, food death, Food Illness, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, Foodborne Illness, Foodborne Illness Death, foodborne outbreak, foodbourne outbreak, Illness, microbial contamination, Microbial growth, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk, outbreak

USA – Listeria Outbreak Linked to Deli Meat and Cheese

Posted on November 11, 2022 | Leave a comment

cdc

You are at higher risk for severe Listeria illness if you are pregnant, aged 65 or older, or have a weakened immune system due to certain medical conditions or treatments. If you are in any of these groups, do not eat meat or cheese from any deli counter, unless it is reheated to an internal temperature of 165°F or until steaming hot.

Fast Facts
  • Illnesses: 16
  • Hospitalizations: 13
  • Deaths: 1
  • States: 6
  • Recall: No
  • Investigation status: Active
Listeria in Deli Meat and Cheese

Deli meats (cold cuts, lunch meats, hot dogs, and pâtés sold at the deli) and cheeses are known sources of Listeria illnesses. This is because Listeria can easily spread among food on deli countertops, deli slicers, surfaces, and hands. Listeria is a hardy germ that can be difficult to fully remove once it is in the deli. It can survive and grow at cold temperatures in the refrigerator.

Source of the Outbreak

Information collected so far shows that deli meat and cheese purchased at deli counters in multiple states are the likely sources of this outbreak.

It is difficult for investigators to identify a single food as the source of outbreaks linked to deli meats and cheeses. This is because Listeria spreads easily between food and the deli environment and can persist for a long time in deli display cases and on equipment. A contaminated food likely introduced the outbreak strain of Listeria into delis in multiple states. Investigators are working to identify any specific products or delis that may be contaminated with the outbreak strain.

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Posted in food bourne outbreak, food contamination, food death, food handler, Food Hazard, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Pathogen, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Safety Management, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Foodborne Illness Death, foodborne outbreak, foodbourne outbreak, Illness, Listeria, Listeria monocytogenes, outbreak