Category Archives: Food Inspections

New US Raw Milk Campylobacter Outbreak

Campylobacter Blog

Raw milk, raw skim milk (non-fat), raw cream and raw butter produced by Organic Pastures Dairy of Fresno County is the subject of a statewide recall and quarantine order announced by California State Veterinarian Dr. Annette Whiteford. The quarantine order came following the confirmed detection of campylobacter bacteria in raw cream.

Consumers are strongly urged to dispose of any Organic Pastures products of these types remaining in their refrigerators, and retailers are to pull those products immediately from their shelves.

From January through April 30, 2012, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) reports that at least 10 people with campylobacter infection were identified throughout California and reported consuming Organic Pastures raw milk prior to illness onset. Their median age is 11.5 years, with six under 18. The age range is nine months to 38 years. They are residents of Fresno, Los Angeles, San Diego, San Luis Obispo and Santa Clara counties. None of the patients have been hospitalised, and there have been no deaths.

Irish Hospital Listeria Outbreak – Warning Over Hospital Sandwiches

Belfast Telegraph

Health trusts across Northern Ireland have been advised to stop serving sandwiches from a specific food supplier following an outbreak of listeria which claimed the life of a patient.

Four patients in the Northern Health & Social Care Trust were affected by the outbreak — an elderly woman being treated at Antrim Area Hospital died on the morning of April 8 and the last case was confirmed on April 20.

I think this needs to be extended to other high risk foods served in hospitals and have done for quite a while.

Tuna Strips Recalled Possible Salmonella Risk

Food Poisoning Bulletin

Moon Fishery Pvt. Ltd of India, the company that manufactured the yellow fin tuna Nakaochi Scrape that was recalled in the United States and sickened at least 258 people in 24 states and the District of Columbia, is recalling 22 pound cases of “Tuna Strips” because they may also be contaminated with Salmonella. The specific serotype of the bacteria was not specified.

RASFF Alerts – Europe

RASFF

Chilled Green Mint from Vietnam distributed in Norway – High E.coli

RASFF

Fresh Chicken Fillets from Poland distributed in Denmark – Salmonella Newport

RASFF

Chilled Yoghurts from Greece – Moulds

RASFF

Fresh Green Mint from Vietnam distributed in Norway – High E.coli

RASFF

Animal Feed Sunflower Meal from the Ukraine distributed in Poland – Salmonella

 

Norovirus Outbreak US Oysters – 14 Sick

Washington Post

NEW ORLEANS — Louisiana health officials say they closed a harvesting area and ordered a recall of oysters taken from there since April 26 after 14 people became ill with norovirus. The closure started Tuesday and was expected to last at least three weeks.

The recall includes shucked, frozen, breaded and processed oysters and those for the half-shell market taken from Area 23 in Terrebonne Parish southwest of New Orleans. Some of the oysters were shipped to Maryland, Texas and Georgia.

Health officials said people became ill after eating oysters from that area at one New Orleans-area restaurant.

US Alfalfa Sprout Recall – Listeria

Food Poisoning Bulletin

Cleveland Beansprouts Co. of Ohio is recalling all alfalfa sprouts because they may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. This bacteria can cause serious and sometimes life-threatening infections to people with weakened immune systems. Pregnant women who contract listeriosis can suffer miscarriages and stillbirths.

There are no lot codes or any other identifier on the product. The sprouts were distributed only in Ohio. The Ohio Department of Agriculture discovered the contamination under the USDA’s Microbiological Data Program, which is set to be eliminated by the White House and Congress in FY 2013.

If you have purchased this product, do not eat it; discard it in a closed container.

US Funfresh Foods – “Cacao Nibs” – Recall E.coli O157

Food Poisoning Journal

FunFresh Foods, Inc. of San Clemente, California in consultation with the FDA is voluntarily recalling a single lot of its 6 ounce packages of FunFresh Foods™ World Berries™ Organic “Cacao Nibs” because they may be contaminated with Escherichia coli O157:H7 bacteria (E. Coli O157:H7). E. coli O157:H7 causes a diarrheal illness often with bloody stools. Although most healthy adults can recover completely within a week, some people can develop a form of kidney failure called Haemolytic Uremic Syndrome (HUS). HUS is most likely to occur in young children and the elderly. The condition can lead to serious kidney damage and even death.

Canada -Roast Beef Church Dinner – 205 Sick

Canada

The Chief Public Health Office began investigating a potential gastrointestinal outbreak Monday after notification that several people became ill after consuming a roast beef dinner prepared by volunteers as part of a fundraiser for Princetown United Church on Saturday, April 28, 2012. The total number of cases of gastrointestinal illness has reached 205.

Information obtained by interviewing persons who purchased the meal indicates that the roast beef was the most likely source of the food-borne illness. Those who picked up their meal early in the afternoon were less likely to have become ill. Food testing is being conducted and it is expected to be several days before all results are known. If symptoms persist, it is advised to seek medical attention.

During the course of the investigation, it was determined that the roast beef was prepared at various sites including the homes of volunteers. This is contrary to the regulations for preparing meals for sale to the public. High-risk foods such as meat, poultry and fish must be cooked and prepared in a licenced facility.

China – Food Safety Website Crashes

Eastday

A POISONOUS food alert website, created by a local postgraduate student, crashed due to severe overload yesterday as visitors thronged the site to learn about food safety amid an unending stream of food scandals in China.

The website has a record of the latest 2,300 food problems in the country, with detailed reports and victim numbers. It maps different areas with different colors to show the degree of food problems.

The website went down at about 10am yesterday when tens of thousand of people visited it at the same time. The website was back online late last night, after it rented a new server to meet the huge demand.

You can try the website link but it is only in Chinese as far as I can see.

Canada – 24 Cases E.coli 0157 Source Unknown

CBCNEWS

At least 24 people in New Brunswick are sick with symptoms of E. coli infection, including eight who are in hospital, but the source of the outbreak remains unclear.

“While laboratory testing continues, several cases have been confirmed as E. coli O157:H7, a severe strain that can sometimes cause serious illness.”

Authorities do have suspicions of the cause, based on some common food sources, he said. But he doesn’t want to say anything definite yet, he said.

“It is common products at this point that people have eaten. I don’t want to name one versus another one without any good evidence at this stage because it wouldn’t be good for people to, for example, stop eating any of a particular food, just because they might be afraid that they may become sick. We really don’t have good evidence.”

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has been involved in testing some food products.