Category Archives: Food Virus

Wolverhampton Wedding – Norovirus

Posted on April 17, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Express and Star

Fifty guests at a diamond wedding party in Wolverhampton were struck down with Norovirus prompting a city-wide alert to GPs.

The outbreak of the bug occurred after the anniversary party in Tettenhall. Everyone is understood to have now recovered but guests had to answer questions from doctors and the Health Protection Agency.

Wolverhampton City Council said tests of food samples indicated it was a viral infection and nothing to do with the venue itself or caterers.

The Health Protection Agency (HPA), Wolverhampton City Primary Care Trust and the council worked together to establish the cause of the 50 cases of diarrhoea and vomiting and confirmed it was Norovirus.

Leave a comment

Posted in Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Food Virus, Foodborne Illness, Microbiology, Norovirus, Pathogen

Tagged ,

Indiana – Norovirus Outbreak – 107 Sick

Posted on April 10, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Food Poisoning Bulletin

According to the Fort Wayne-Allen County Department of Health in Indiana, 107 people who ate at Cebolla’s Mexican Grill in Fort Wayne have been sickened by norovirus. The original report in March recorded 20 illnesses.

The restaurant, which is located at 5930 West Jefferson Boulevard in Fort Wayne, Indiana, has been cooperating with the investigation. The restaurant closed back in March for cleaning and disinfecting.

Leave a comment

Posted in Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Food Virus, Foodborne Illness, Microbiology, Norovirus, outbreak, Pathogen

Canada -Recall Hepatitis A Virus

Posted on April 6, 2012 by | Leave a comment

CIFA 

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and Overwaitea Food Group are warning the public not to consume the Western Family brand Pomeberry Blend berries described below. The affected product may contain Hepatitis A virus.

The affected product Western Family brand Pomeberry Blend berries is sold frozen in 600g packages bearing UPC 0 62639 31347 0. All lot codes are affected.

This product is known to have been distributed in British Columbia, Alberta, and Ontario and may also have been distributed to other provinces.

This recall is a result of an ongoing food safety investigation with BCCDC and regional health authorities into a number of cases of hepatitis A in British Columbia.

Food contaminated with Hepatitis A virus may not look or smell spoiled. Consumption of food contaminated with this virus may cause hepatitis and produce a self-limited disease that does not result in chronic infection or chronic liver disease. The illness is usually mild and starts about 15 to 50 days after the contaminated food is eaten. It generally goes away by itself in a week or two, although it can last up to 6 months in some people. It can cause inflammation of the liver, and symptoms may include fever, low appetite, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, muscle aches, and yellowing in the whites of the eyes and the skin (jaundice).

Leave a comment

Posted in CIFA, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Food Virus, Hepatitis A, Microbiology, Pathogen

Tagged ,

Norovirus Epidemiology Review

Posted on March 31, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Cambridge Journals Online 

Food Safety Review

Norovirus – a bug that causes gastrointestinal illness – is responsible for 12 percent of all diarrheal disease worldwide and is estimated to cause 218,000 deaths among children under 5 each year. 
 
Now a clearer picture of how this virus spreads and where it originates is being drawn by a review published this week in Epidemiology & Infection.
 
Norovirus is derived from fecal matter, and can infect people via 4 routes: contaminated water, contaminated food, contaminated environmental surfaces or contact with an infected person. 
 
Researchers from Emory University and the University of Michigan looked at 902 Norovirus (NoV) outbreaks documented between 1993 and 2011, finding that most were associated with transmission through food or in a food service setting.
 
 

Leave a comment

Posted in Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Food Virus, Foodborne Illness, Microbiology, Norovirus, outbreak, Pathogen, Research

US – 30 at College Hit with Norovirus Illness

Posted on March 29, 2012 by | Leave a comment

lohud.com

Dozens of students at Corcordia College are recovering from a stomach virus that swept the campus over the weekend and sent a few people to the hospital.

Some students suspect it was the Norovirus — a fast-spreading foodborne disease that causes diarrhea, vomiting and stomach pains — but there is no official finding, college officials said.

It was first reported on the 800-student campus Friday. Within a couple of days, 30 students contracted the virus and four wound up in Lawrence Hospital Center in Bronxville.

Leave a comment

Posted in Eurofins Laboratories, Food Illness, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Virus, Foodborne Illness, Microbiology, Norovirus, outbreak, Pathogen

Norovirus Threat to Olympics Matches Al-Qaeda

Posted on March 26, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Food Manufacturer

Foodborne diseases, such as norovirus, are as big a threat to the Olympics as terrorist groups like Al-Qaeda, according to a Home Office risk assessment.

Leave a comment

Posted in Bacteria, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Food Virus, Foodborne Illness, Microbiology, Norovirus, Pathogen

Tagged

100 Sick from Norovirus US Hockey Game.

Posted on March 20, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Detroit Free Press

Wayne County health officials confirmed today that the outbreak of vomiting and diarrhea that sent nearly 100 people to area hospitals Sunday from a hockey tournament at the Taylor Sportsplex was caused by a fast-spreading Norovirus.

Leave a comment

Posted in Eurofins Laboratories, Food Illness, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Food Virus, Microbiology, Norovirus, outbreak, Pathogen

Sundried Tomato’s – Hep A Virus UK

Posted on March 5, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Food Production Daily

Contamination during sun-dried tomato processing is a possible “root cause” of an outbreak of hepatitis A in the UK, according to the UK Food Standards Agency (FSA).

BBC

Leave a comment

Posted in Eurofins Laboratories, Food Illness, Food Poisoning, Food Standards Agency, Food Virus, Hepatitis A, Listeria monocytogenes, Microbiology, outbreak, Pathogen

HPS – Norovirus – Rotavirus- Cryptosporidium and Giardia Report 2011

Posted on February 29, 2012 by | Leave a comment

HPA 

The Health Protection Agency Scotlan (HPA) has released its 2011 report into the incidence of viral and protozoal reported infections 2011.

There were 1668 laboratory reports of Norovirus (NV) to HPS in 2011, a marked decrease of 1441 (46.3%) on 2010 when there were 3109 reports.

There were 1465 laboratory reports of Rotavirus to HPS in 2011, a decrease of 326 (18.2%) compared to 2010 when there were 1791 reports.

A total of 442 isolates of Cryptosporidium sp. were reported to HPS in 2011. This compares with 584 in 2010, a statistically significant decrease of 24%.

A total of 194 isolates of Giardia sp. were reported to HPS in 2011.

 

Leave a comment

Posted in Cryptosporidium, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Illness, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Virus, Giardia, HPA, Microbiology, Rotavirus

Tagged ,

Food Safety Ireland and EFSA – Norovirus Collaboration

Posted on February 29, 2012 by | 1 comment

FSAI

 Norovirus is a major cause of acute gastroenteritis in Europe.  The virus is readily transmitted from person to person so outbreaks can easily become large, as shown in the outbreak that occurred in a Dublin Hotel just before Christmas.  In this instance, around 580 people reported illness after attending events in the hotel.  Food and water can also be sources of norovirus infection when they are either contaminated with faecal matter or cross-contaminated by food handlers.

A major issue for the Authorities and the industry in Ireland surrounds decisions regarding the safety of oysters when they are found to contain norovirus genome copies but are nevertheless compliant with all applicable control requirements.  In this context the FSAI requested advice from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) on the public health risks associated with establishing standards for noroviruses in oysters.

EFSA concluded that norovirus is highly infectious and low doses can result in disease.  However, it noted that the amount of virus detected in oysters linked to human illness could vary greatly.  It also concluded that norovirus genetic material was frequently detected in European oysters even when they complied with existing control standards.

The opinion went on to recommend that risk managers should consider establishing an acceptable limit for norovirus in oysters that are intended to be harvested and placed on the market in the EU.

1 Comment

Posted in EFSA, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Technology, Food Testing, Food Virus, Microbiology, Norovirus, Pathogen