Category Archives: Food Microbiology

Denmark – Mold in organic acidified oat product

Foedevarestyrelsen

Image of the product: JÖRD organic acidified oat product

JÖRD International A/S is recalling JÖRD organic acidified oat product with strawberries, as there is a risk of mold in the product. Mold makes the oat product unsuitable as food.

If you have the product, you should discard it or return it to the store where it was purchased.

JÖRD organic acidified oat product with strawberries

Net content: 400g

Production date: June 22, 2023

Best before date: 3 August 2023

Batch no: ES23254001

Keep food safe in the car

ACSA

High temperatures in summer can quickly damage fresh fruits and vegetables, but they can also accelerate the growth of microorganisms responsible for food poisoning, especially in meat and fish.

As a general rule, meat can NEVER be left out of the fridge for more than 2 hours, but in summer, when temperatures are very high, we must refrigerate as soon as possible. At temperatures of 30ºC, microorganisms multiply rapidly.

If the outside temperature is high, we must think that inside a parked car this temperature is even much higher, so here are some recommendations to keep buying food during the car trip:

  1. Plan your orders. If you have to do the shopping and other tasks, the order in doing these tasks is very important, especially in summer. Make sure shopping for perishable food is the last thing you do before heading straight home.
  2. Park in the shade. Staying out of direct sun can help maintain the vehicle’s temperature.
  3. Use bags with thermal insulation. You can purchase bags with thicker liners to keep food colder longer, but remember that they have a limited shelf life.
  4. Buy food in a planned way. Make perishable products (meat, fish…) the last items you buy so that they are out of the fridge or freezer for as little time as possible.
  5. Take special care with meat and fish. Meat and fish have microorganisms and an increase in temperatures will allow them to multiply.
  6. Prepare the bags considering the temperature at which the food must be kept. This means putting food that needs cold together and food that doesn’t need it in other bags. Put meat and fish separately from other foods to avoid cross contamination.
  7. Avoid the trunk. When you put the purchase in the car, try not to leave the most perishable foods in the trunk since it is the hottest place in the car. Instead, the best place is on the floor of the seats, out of the sun, and with air conditioning so they stay cooler if air circulates between them.
  8. Don’t forget the food you haven’t eaten from the restaurant. Treat them the same as fresh groceries. Follow the safety tips for taking uneaten food home from the restaurant . 
  9. And when you get home, put your groceries (and leftovers) in the fridge as soon as possible!

France – Traditional Ardeche Sausage – Listeria monocytogenes

Gov france

Batch of 2 artisanal sausages from the Ardèche

Gov france

Traditional Ardèche sausage 300g

Gov france

Traditional Ardèche cured sausage

Netherlands – Jumbo Fig almond slices – Ochratoxin A

NVWA

Safety warning Jumbo Fig almond slices

Jumbo warns against Jumbo Fig almond slices. The product may contain Ochratoxin A, eating this can lead to serious health problems. Do not eat the product!

See Jumbo’s website

Which product is it?

  • Jumbo Fig almond slices
  • Barcode: 8718452424740
  • Best before 03-11-2023

Yours sincerely

The Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority

France – Various Sausages – Defective casings leading to possible contamination of the sausage contained inside the casing

Gov france

Genuine Lyon sausage from Alsace 250g

Gov france

Real pistachio sausage from Alsace

Gov france

ham sausage

Belgium – Mendiants (1kg mix) from the Nice & Nuts brand – Ochratoxin A

AFSCA

Biofresh Belgium recall
Product: Mendiants (1kg mix) from the Nice & Nuts brand.
Problem: Too high content of ochratoxin A.
In agreement with the FASFC, Biofresh Belgium is withdrawing Mendiants (1kg mix) from sale and recalling them from consumers because of an excessively high content of ochratoxin A. Biofresh Belgium asks its customers not to consume this product and to return it to the point of sale where it was purchased

Product description

– Product name: Mendiants (1kg mix)
– Brand: Nice & Nuts
– Best before date (BDD): 04/07/2024
– Sales period: from 05/26/2023 to 07/12/2023 inclusive
– Type of packaging: plastic bag
– Weight: 1kg

France – Chopped Steak 5% MG and 15% MG – STEC E.coli O157

Gov france

Identification information of the recalled product

  • Product category Feed
  • Product subcategory Meats
  • Product brand name Tender and More
  • Model names or references Chopped steak 5% fat 6x100g Chopped steak 15% fat 3x125g
  • Identification of products
    GTIN Batch Date
    3265980125908 Chopped Steak 5% fat 6x100g lot B18990300 Use-by date 07/15/2023
    3265980125908 Chopped Steak 5% fat 6x100g lot B18990300 Use-by date 07/17/2023
    3265980123553 Chopped steak 15% fat 3x125g lot B18990300 Use-by date 07/17/2023
  • Products List 2023-07-21_Displays_stores_Leclerc_v2.pdfAttachment
  • Packaging 6x100g for Ground Steak 5% fat 3x125g for Ground Steak 15% fat
  • Marketing start/end date From 07/10/2023 to 07/17/2023
  • Storage temperature Product to be stored in the refrigerator
  • Health mark EN 38.051.001 CE
  • Further information Only lot B18990300 is affected
  • Geographic area of ​​sale Departments: AIN (01), ALLIER (03), DROME (26), ISERE (38), LOIRE (42), NIEVRE (58), RHONE (69), SAONE-ET-LOIRE (71), SAVOIE (73), HAUTE-SAVOIE (74), VAUCLUSE (84)
  • Distributors LECLERC

Ghana – Food Poisoning Hits Abutia Senior High School: 23 Students Rushed To Hospital After Eating Rice Meal

YEN

23 students of Abutia SHS were rushed to the hospital on Friday after eating a rice meal on campus suspected to have been contaminated All 23 students showed classic symptoms of food poisoning – abdominal pains, vomiting and diarrhoea – and said they started after eating fried rice from the school’s canteen The school has not responded to the matter but the public health unit of the hospital where the students were admitted has launched an investigation

Belgium – Amandelvijgenschijfjes “fig slices with almonds” from the brand Jumbo. – Ochratoxin A

AFSCA

Recall of Jumbo Supermarkten
Product: Amandelvijgenschijfjes “fig slices with almonds” from the brand Jumbo.
Problem: Too high content of Ochratoxin A.


In agreement with the FASFC, Jumbo is withdrawing the product Amandelvijgenschijfjes “slices of figs with almonds” from the Jumbo brand with the expiry date of 03/11/2023 and the EAN code 8718452424740 and is recalling it from consumers due to an excessively high content of Ochratoxin A. Jumbo asks its customers not to consume this product and to return it to the point of sale in which it was purchased, where it will be refunded to them

Product description Product

name: Amandelvijgenschijfjes “fig slices with almonds”
Brand: Jumbo
EAN code on the label: 8718452424740
Best before date (BDD): 03-11-2023
Sale period: from 12/07/2023 to 20/07/2023 inclusive
Nature of packaging: Plastic packaging
Weight: 75 g

USA – Breaking news: Listeria outbreak sickens 5, kills 3 in Washington

Food Safety News

A deadly outbreak of infections from Listeria is under investigation by state and local officials in Washington.

As of late today five patients had been identified. All five required hospitalization and three have died, according to the Tacoma-Pierece County Health Department.

All of the patients are or were in their 60s or 70s and all had weakened immune systems, according to the health department, which is working with Washington State Department of Health (DOH) and Thurston County Public Health and Social Services.

The Tacoma News is reporting that “genetic fingerprinting results (whole genome sequencing) indicate that these patients likely have the same source of infection. Patients became ill between February 27 and June 30, 2023.”

State and local public health officials have not yet discovered a source for the bacteria. They are interviewing patients and their representatives to develop a profile.

The state of Washington generally logs 10 to 25 cases of Listeria infection annually, according to the Tacoma health department.