The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) yesterday issued a public health warning advising the public not to collect or consume shellfish harvested from the entire Bay of Islands inside a line between Cape Brett northward to Cape Wiwiki.
Routine tests on shellfish samples taken from this region have shown levels of Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning (PSP) toxins above the safe limit of 0.8 mg/kg set by MPI. Anyone eating shellfish from this area is potentially at risk of illness.
CFS
The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department today (November 26) announced the test results of a recently completed seasonal food surveillance project on the microbiological quality of poon choi. Thirty samples were collected and all passed the tests.
A CFS spokesman said, “As poon choi is popular for gatherings during winter and there were previous cases of bacterial food poisoning associated with poon choi, the CFS has continued to conduct a seasonal food surveillance project this year to assess the microbiological quality of poon choi. A total of 30 poon choi samples were collected from different retailers (including online retailers) for testing of common food poisoning organisms including Bacillus cereus, Clostridium perfringens, Salmonella, coagulase-positive staphylococci organisms and Vibrio parahaemolyticus.”
Despite the satisfactory results of all samples tested, the spokesman reminded people to be careful when purchasing and enjoying this seasonal delicacy. He advised consumers to order poon choi from licensed and reliable shops, avoid prolonged storage of poon choi at room temperature to reduce the risk of bacteria growth, reheat poon choi thoroughly before consumption, consume cooked or reheated poon choi as soon as possible or keep the food at temperatures above 60 degrees Celsius, and stop consuming the food if it tastes or smells abnormal.
“The public should also maintain a balanced diet and avoid eating too much food with high levels of energy, sugar, salt or fat,” the spokesman said.
He also appealed to the food trade not to entertain orders beyond handling capacity. Traders are reminded to check the quality of food and ingredients when they are delivered to them. In addition, to reduce the risk of food poisoning, they should avoid preparing food too far in advance and take note of the temperature in storing, transporting and preparing food.
“All food and food ingredients should be stored at safe temperatures while perishable items should be stored at 4 degrees C or below. The cooling time of cooked food should be reduced as far as possible, for example, by dividing food into smaller portions or placing it in shallow containers. When transporting hot poon choi, it should be kept at above 60 degrees C, and for chilled poon choi, it should be kept at 4 degrees C or below,” the spokesman said.
“Traders should also provide clear advice on the proper methods of storing and reheating of poon choi to consumers so as to further reduce the risk of food poisoning due to improper handling,” he added.
The CFS will continue its surveillance of poon choi available in the market to ensure food safety and protect the health of the public.
Posted in Bacillus, Bacillus cereus, Clostridium perfringens, food contamination, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Pathogen, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Salmonella, Staphylococcus aureus, Uncategorized, Vibrio, Vibrio parahaemolyticus
Hurriyet Daily News writes the senate of Van Yüzüncü Yıl University in the eastern province of Van has decided that one academic will dine with students every day after dozens of students living in a dormitory suffered from food poisoning last week.
On Nov. 29, a total of 337 students were hospitalized following complaints such as nausea and high fever. A special commission was established to investigate the suspected poisoning and officials from the local health and provincial directorate of agriculture collected samples from the food and the water students consumed
Ottawa, December 4, 2018 – Industry is recalling Eat Smart brand Salad Shake Ups – Sweet Kale from the marketplace due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination. Consumers should not consume the recalled product described below.
| Brand Name | Common Name | Size | Code(s) on Product | UPC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eat Smart | Salad Shake Ups – Sweet Kale | 156 g | Best Before DEC 03 2018 DE 03 112 319 |
7 09351 30243 5 |
If you think you became sick from consuming a recalled product, call your doctor.
Check to see if you have recalled products in your home. Recalled products should be thrown out or returned to the store where they were purchased.
Food contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes may not look or smell spoiled but can still make you sick.
The Cracker Barrel restaurant near I-94 and S. 9th St. is voluntarily closing its’ doors for good following a salmonella outbreak investigation.The Kalamazoo County Health & Community Services Department (HCS), along with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) began investigating the location in June 2018 for health code violations and reports of food borne illnesses. HCS officials said the establishment voluntarily closed in June to begin facility renovations and worked with them to ensure all Michigan Food Law requirements were met to reopen.
In the second half of the year alone, Singapore has seen a series of food poisonings, with threethis month.
In July, about 200 students of CHIJ Secondary (Toa Payoh) had symptoms of food poisoning, including diarrhoea and abdominal pain.
None of the affected students was hospitalised and most returned to school soon after, said the school’s principal Karen Tay.
Last month, days before the A-level examinations, about 200 Raffles Institution students showed symptoms of food poisoning after a buffet prepared by an external caterer.
Most of the affected students were in Year 6 and had symptoms such as diarrhoea and stomachache. One student was hospitalised.
In the past three weeks, over 400 people fell ill after consuming catered food.
Posted in food contamination, food death, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Pathogen, Food Poisoning, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, foodborne outbreak, foodbourne outbreak, Uncategorized
JBS Tolleson, Inc., a Tolleson, Ariz. establishment, is recalling approximately 12,093,271 pounds of non-intact raw beef products that may be contaminated with Salmonella Newport, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today.
The raw, non-intact beef items, including ground beef, were packaged on various dates from July 26, 2018 to Sept. 7, 2018. The following products are subject to recall: [Products List (PDF) | Product Labels (PDF only)|
Infected Icelandic oysters caused food poisoning for 48 individuals at Skelfisksmarkaðurinn, a relatively new restaurant owned by succcessful tv chef and restaurant owner Hrefna Sætran. Icelandic oysters are a novelty in Iceland as all oysters on menus until now have been imported from Ireland or other countries.
The oysters were imported as youngsters and raised in Skjálfandaflói bay by company Víkurskel. This is the first time that the noro virus is confirmed in oysters in Iceland.
At least three people including two children are dead and over 250 taken ill due to alleged food poisoning in Uttarakhand’s Bageshwar district.
According to Kumaon Commissioner Rajeev Rautela, those dead include two children aged 10 and five years old and a woman.
At a wedding ceremony on November 29 night, many guests consumed food and subsequently fell sick including the bride and groom. All have been admitted to different hospitals in Berinag, Kapkot, Bageshwar, Almora and Haldwani.
In the third case of mass food poisoning this month, 131 people – including kindergarten pupils and teachers – fell ill on Monday (26 November) after consuming food from a caterer while attending a learning camp.
In a joint statement released on Tuesday, the National Environment Agency (NEA), Ministry of Health (MOH) and Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) said they are investigating an outbreak of gastroenteritis – inflammation of the stomach and intestines which causes vomiting and diarrhoea.
The outbreak was traced to the consumption of food prepared by FoodTalks Caterer & Manufacturer, located at Shimei East Kitchen along Bedok North Street 5. The three authorities carried out a joint inspection of the premises on Tuesday, with food and environmental samples taken for testing and food handlers being sent for stool screening.
According to Chinese daily Lianhe Zaobao, the food poisoning victims had attended a learning camp organised by Busy Bees Asia. Organisers said that the camp was stopped immediately upon the outbreak of food poisoning.
As of Tuesday, 131 cases of gastroenteritis had been reported. None of the victims have been hospitalised.
Posted in food bourne outbreak, food contamination, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Poisoning, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Food Toxin, foodborne disease, Foodborne Illness, foodborne outbreak, Uncategorized
