We investigated contamination by hepatitis E virus (HEV) in the pork production chain in the United Kingdom. We detected HEV in pig liver samples in a slaughterhouse, in surface samples from a processing plant, and in pork sausages and surface samples at point of sale. Our findings provide evidence for possible foodborne transmission of HEV during pork production.
Posted in Food Safety, Food Virus, Hepatitis E, Pathogen, Research, Virus
Tagged foodborne transmission, liver samples, pig liver, pork sausages
CDC – Outbreak Earlier this year. Basketball Tournament
WZZM – Cheerleaders suffer Norovirus outbreak.
About 35-40 high school girls were affected by the outbreak, which began late Tuesday or early Wednesday. They suffered diarrhea, vomiting and stomach cramps, according to Kent County Health Department spokeswoman Lisa LaPlante, though none of the victims required medical treatment or hospitalisation.
WDRB – Notre Dame Norovirus Outbreak
The University of Notre Dame says Indiana State Department of Health lab tests confirm a norovirus cause of an outbreak of gastrointestinal illness that affected more than 100 youths taking part in sports camps.
The university said Saturday it received that news from St. Joseph County Health Officer Dr. Thomas Felger.
Notre Dame says a norovirus is very contagious and the most common “stomach bug” in the United States. It says the specific reason for the outbreak at Notre Dame remains unknown.
An outbreak of Hepatitis E has killed at least 12 people and left 4,089 others unwell, officials in the western Indian state of Maharashtra said.
The outbreak happened in Ichalkaranji, a city of 300,000 people.
“The cause of the outbreak is contaminated water from the Panchganga river,” Dr LS Patil, a senior government doctor in the region, said.
County environmental health officials have ordered the closing of a popular Walnut Creek pizza restaurant after test results confirmed that customers and restaurant staff have norovirus.
Contra Costa County Environmental Health Director Marilyn Underwood said the county ordered California Pizza Kitchen at Broadway Plaza, Walnut Creek, closed at 5 p.m. Thursday after receiving lab resulting confirming norovirus.
Norovirus is a contagious virus that you can get from an infected person, contaminated food or by touching contaminated surfaces. Each year, norovirus causes about 21 million gastrointestinal illnesses, and contributes to about 70,000 hospitalisations and 800 deaths, according to the website of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
County officials have linked the norovirus to a food-borne illness outbreak connected with salad served Thursday, June 7, at the California Pizza Kitchen at Broadway Plaza, Walnut Creek.
County officials went to the restaurant Thursday evening and posted a notice closing the restaurant under the authority of state law. They asked the staff to close the restaurant. The staff quietly asked customers to leave, Underwood said.
The first batch of samples came back Thursday. Of five employees tested, three positive for norovirus, Underwood said. Of two customers tested, both were positive for norovirus.
Korean shellfish is not safe to eat and Korea has been removed from the U.S. list of approved shellfish shippers after officials from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) discovered unsanitary conditions that exposed molluscan growing areas to human fecal matter, norovirus and pollution, the agency announced yesterday.
Posted in Eurofins Laboratories, FDA, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Food Virus, Foodborne Illness, Hygiene, Microbiology, Norovirus, outbreak, Pathogen, Recall
Tagged environment, food and drug administration, food and drug administration fda
MORE than 100 people connected to the Gleneagles Hotel have been hit by a suspected norovirus outbreak.
The luxury Auchterarder venue is working with NHS Tayside to identify the cause of the cases of vomiting and diarrhoea and put in place infection-control measures.
Most of the cases only came to light after guests who had stayed there last weekend contacted the hotel after falling ill.
Some staff and hotel residents are still recovering, but an NHS spokeswoman said nobody had been taken to hospital.
A spokeswoman for Gleneagles said a “mix” of residents, guests and staff were affected
As a result of the FDA ban on Korean shellfish for unsanitary conditions and the presence of norovirus, Crown Prince Seafood is recalling oyster products. All of the company’s wholesalers are instructed to suspend shipments, and retailers should remove these products from their shelves.
The illicit and highly-lucrative trade in shellfish is putting the health of many thousands of people at risk with tonnes of potentially contaminated seafood feared to be entering the food chain.
Health officials and food watchdogs are concerned that a boom in the illegal harvesting of cockles, clams and oysters for sale to restaurants and wholesalers threatens outbreaks of serious food poisoning.
The thriving seafood rustling industry, which sees unlicensed gangs of pickers target beaches and mudflats across the country to steal molluscs worth thousands of pounds at a time, has prompted a crackdown by the authorities. But with some pickers operating in organised gangs, fisheries protection bodies say they lack the resources to effectively tackle the problem.
With an annual value of at least £250m, the legitimate shellfish industry is a major part of Britain’s food economy. Properly gathered molluscs are subject to strict purification treatments, including ultra-violet light and filtering, to ensure they are fit for human consumption.
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BALANGA CITY, Bataan: The Provincial Health Office on Monday announced that it has conducted outbreak investigations on 122 victims of food poisoning and 117 persons struck down by diarrhea in Limay, Bataan and Balanga City in separate occasions on Tuesday to Thursday last week.
Dr. Rosanna Buccahan, acting Provincial Health Officer, said they are waiting for the results of rectal swab to be known in two weeks and stool culture in one week to determine the cause or causes that affected the victims.
“We are waiting for results of the random rectal swab and stool culture from the Research Institute of Tropical Medicine in Metro Manila after the PHO in coordination with the Regional Epidemiology Research Center and the Department of Health conducted the tests,” she said.
Buccahan said that 117 inmates of the Bataan District Jail in Balanga City suffered from diarrhea Tuesday last week while 25 people were victimized by food poisoning after eating egg rolls (lumpia) during a funeral in Limay last Thursday. Ninety-seven, mostly children, were downed by food poisoning after eating dirty ice cream in Barangay Cabog-Cabog in Balanga last Wednesday
FoodWorld 