Category Archives: Food Poisoning

USA – Article – How do Pathogens get into Produce

This is a very interesting article in Food Safety News which I think would be of interest to Food Microbiologists and the Produce industry alike. the link will take you to the full article

Food Safety News

Leafy greens, lettuce, cantaloupes, mangoes and strawberries. These are just some of the foods that have sickened or even killed people when they were contaminated with foodborne pathogens such as E. coli, Listeria and Salmonella.

Amidst the confusing swirl of information about these and other produce outbreaks, the question arises: Were some of these pathogens inside the produce? Could it be — in some cases, anyway — that the plant’s roots sucked the pathogens up out of the soil and transferred them through the plant into its edible parts?

European Alerts – Norovirus – Salmonella

Denmark – Norovirus in French Oysters

RASFF – Salmonella in Lemon Thyme in the UK sourced in Morocco

 

USA – Norovirus Outbreak Shuts School

Food Safety NewsNorovirus

Norovirus sickened more than 300 students at an Arkansas middle school last week, causing the school to shut its doors Friday.

At least a third of the 900 children who attend Hellstern Middle School in Springfield and several staff either stayed home or fell ill at school Thursday, complaining of gastrointestinal symptoms, reported NWA. At the time, the cause of their illnesses remained unknown.

Then on Monday, health officials announced that Norovirus was likely the responsible pathogen.

All stool samples taken from sick children tested positive for the virus, said Springfield district spokesperson Rick Schaeffer, according to NWA.

Hong Kong – Recall Australian Cheese Implicated in the Listeria Outbreak

Center for Food SafetyFood Testing

The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department today (January 21) urged the public not to consume certain soft cheese products, manufactured in Australia, which might have been contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. The trade should stop selling the concerned products.

“The CFS noticed through its routine Food Incident Surveillance System that some cheese products produced by an Australian manufacturer, Jindi Cheese Pty Ltd, were suspected to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes.  The concerned company is now voluntarily recalling all soft and semi-soft cheese products it manufactured on or before January 6 this year,” a spokesman for the CFS said.

“The CFS subsequently received notification from the International Food Safety Authorities Network of the World Health Organisation / the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations that some of the affected products have been imported to Hong Kong,” he added.

According to the information provided by the Australian authorities, the CFS has contacted two chain stores which had imported the affected products, namely PARKnSHOP and Pacific Gourmet. The shops were instructed to stop selling the products concerned (see attached table). The CFS was also informed that the companies had set up hotlines to answer consumers’ enquiries about the product recall, PARKnSHOP at 2606 8658 and Pacific Gourmet at 3184 0805.

“In case any consumers have bought the affected soft cheese products, they should stop eating them, regardless of batches. To be prudent, consumers who recently bought any cut portion of gourmet soft cheese and are unsure of the product details should also stop eating it. People are advised to seek medical advice if they feel sick after consuming the products concerned. So far the CFS has not received any reports of persons feeling unwell after consumption of the affected products,” the spokesman said.

Australia – Two Dead and a Miscarriage Listeria Cheese Outbreak

Food Safety News

A Listeria monocytogenes outbreak linked to soft cheeses has sickened 18 people in Australia; two victims have died and one woman miscarried as a result of infection with the bacteria.

The outbreak began in November of 2012, at which time an 84-year-old man from Victoria and a 44-year-old Tasmanian man died as a result of their illnesses, and a New South Wales woman suffered a miscarriage.  By mid-December, 11 cases of listeriosis (Listeria infection) had been identified as part of the outbreak, and brie and camembert cheese sold under the brand names of Jindi and Wattle Valley were implicated as the source of the bacteria.

As a result, health authorities announced a recall of four types of cheeses – 1kg packages of Jindi brie, 1kg packages of Jindi camembert, 1kg  packages of Wattle Valley double brie and 1kg packages of Wattle Valley camembert – all with a best before date of December 21.

Now a further seven cases have been connected to the outbreak, health authorities announced Friday. Officials also expanded the recall to include all cheeses manufactured by the Jindi company up to and including January 6.

UK – Takeaway Owner Jailed for E.coli Outbreak

BBC NewsEcoli Istock

The owner of a Cardiff takeaway has been jailed for eight months following an outbreak of E. coli.

Diar Wali Ali admitted at Cardiff magistrates’ court to 23 food hygiene offences and was jailed on Monday.

In August 2011, nine customers fell ill with food poisoning after visiting the Adonis Kebab House in City Road, Roath.

The takeaway was closed for two weeks while inspections were carried out and the council was satisfied the risks had been removed.

Councillor Derek Morgan, chair of Cardiff council’s public protection committee, said people had a right to eat safe food and certain levels of hygiene.

“However, where poor hygiene practices and substandard conditions are found, we take immediate action to safeguard public health,” he said.

“I hope this case helps to show how seriously we take this commitment and demonstrate that, where appropriate, we will use the full force of the law to ensure food safety regulations are met.”

USA – Raw Milk STEC Outbreak

 Food Poisoning Journal

The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) has become aware of several cases of diarrheal illness from northwest Missouri, possibly caused by Shiga-toxin producing Escherichia coli (STEC), including one confirmed as E. coli O103. These may be related to the consumption of locally-produced, raw (unpasteurized) dairy products.

DHSS recommends that any person who has signs or symptoms of STEC infection seek medical care. Health care providers should evaluate patients adequately to determine if testing for STEC infection is warranted.

Symptoms of STEC infection include severe stomach cramps, diarrhea (which is often bloody), and vomiting. If there is fever, it usually is not very high. Most patients’ symptoms improve within 5–7 days, but some patients go on to develop hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), usually about a week after the diarrhea starts. The classic triad of findings in HUS are acute renal damage, microangiopathic hemolytic anemia, and thrombocytopenia.

Research – Campylobacter in Chicken Factory Workers

Food Safety NewsimagesCAYZ5I84

New analysis of Campylobacter infections among workers at a Virginia poultry plant offers hints about which employees more likely to fall ill from the bacteria.

Government researchers examined health data for plant employees from January 2008 through May 2011 and found that 29 Campylobacter cases had been confirmed during that time period.

Their findings reveal three characteristics of workers who were more likely to be sickened:

  • Recently employed: A full 83 percent of these patients had worked at the plant less than a month before falling ill, suggesting that illness is more common among new employees.
  • Worked in the live-hang area: Those whose job involved hanging live chickens were far more likely to be infected than those working in other parts of the facility. Of those sickened, 62 percent worked in a live-hang area.
  • Resided in diversion centers: Almost all the employees who contracted Campylobacter infections (26 out of 29) lived in state-operated diversion centers. The authors say the high illness rate among this group may be due to the fact that diversion center residents are disproportionately assigned to live-hang areas, where they are more likely to be exposed to the bacteria.

The fact that new employees fell ill more frequently than those who had been there more than a month is consistent with findings from other studies, which have suggested that workers develop immunity to the bacteria during the first few weeks of work.

CDC – Report

USA – E.coli O157 – Outbreak in Leafy Greens

Food Poisoning Bulletin

 E.coli outbreak likely caused by leafy greens has sickened five people in Hamilton County, Ohio, Food Poisoning Bulletin has learned. The outbreak was confirmed this morning by  Mike Samet, a public information officer, for the county’s public health department.

There are five confirmed cases and one probable case of  E.coli 0157:H7 infection which were likely caused by tainted leafy greens, he said. The case patients, four females and two males,  range in age from 12 to 83 and first showed signs of illness from December 10 to December 15, 2012

Canada – E.coli O157 Outbreak Update

Food Safety NewsEcoli Istock

Canada’s eastern and adjoining provinces of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick are reporting 15 confirmed cases of E. coli O157:H7. None of the illnesses have yet been traced to a source.

Ten of the E. coli illnesses are located in central Nova Scotia, with five reported by the Capital District Health, two by the Guysborough Antigonish Strait Health Authority, and one each by the Pictou, Cumberland, and Colcherster East Hants health authorities.

On the other side of the Bay of Fundy in New Brunswick, heath officials reported two cases were reported in the St. John region and three in the Fredericton region.

Dr. Eilish Cleary, chief medical officer for New Brunswick, said it is not known if there is a common source for the cases. A number of possible sources are being investigated. Dr. Robert Strang, chief medical officer for Nova Scotia, said that it would not be uncommon for there to be additional cases as it may take as long as ten days for some people to begin to experience symptoms of E. coli O157:H7 and get tested.

One of the Nova Scotia patients experienced kidney failure, but along with the others is said to be recovering. In New Brunswick, four illnesses were treated by emergency room visits, and one victim was hospitalized.