Category Archives: Foodborne Illness

More Pet Food Contaminated with Salmonella

Posted on May 2, 2012 by | 1 comment

FDA 

Kaytee Pet Products is recalling a single manufacturing batch of Kaytee Forti-Diet Pro Health Mouse, Rat and Hamster due to possible contamination with Salmonella.

No human or pet illnesses have been reported to-date. The recall notification is being issued based on a single manufacturing batch wherein a sample with the “Best Before” date of (lot) 03APR13K61 had a positive result for Salmonella in a random sample test conducted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The Kaytee Forti-Diet Pro Health Mouse, Rat & Hamster product was originally manufactured on January 5 and 6, 2012.  Kaytee is taking immediate action to remove the product from all retail stores and distribution centers, and to fully investigate the cause.

Salmonella can affect animals eating the products and there is a risk to humans from handling contaminated pet products, especially if they have not thoroughly washed their hands after having contact with the products or any surfaces exposed to these products.

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Posted in Bacteria, FDA, Food Safety Alert, Foodborne Illness, Microbiology, Pathogen, Pet Food, Salmonella

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US – Kent County Jail – Clostridium perfringens Poisoning

Posted on May 2, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Food Poisoning Bulletin

According to Lisa LaPlante, Communications and Marketing Manager of the Kent County Department of Health, the source of the April 15, 2012 food poisoning outbreak at the Kent County Jail has been discovered.

Laboratory tests have revealed that there was Clostridium perfringens, a spore-producing bacteria, in a rice and cheese product. The food was prepared, chilled, and then reheated and served to the inmates.

All 250 inmates who were sickened have recovered. No one was hospitalised during this outbreak. Other food samples have been sent to the lab for testing because this was such a large outbreak. Officials expect it will be another month or two before the investigation is complete.

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Posted in Bacteria, Clostridium perfringens, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Hygiene, Microbiology, outbreak, Pathogen

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Wales Cryptosporidium Outbreak Update

Posted on May 1, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Public Health Wales 

A further four people have been clinically diagnosed with cryptosporidiosis and are linked to the outbreak associated with a farm in Cwmbran.
 
The four new cases bring the total number of confirmed cases investigated as part of the outbreak to eight. All cases were either members of staff or volunteers who bottle fed unwell animals. These animals have now been removed from the farm.
 
Public Health Wales and Torfaen County Borough Council with the Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency are continuing to investigate the outbreak of cryptosporidiosis, and extra control measures are now in place to ensure that risks to farm visitors and staff are kept to a minimum.
 

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Posted in Cryptosporidium, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Safety, Foodborne Illness, Microbiology, Pathogen

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Mexico Over 300 Sick Food Poisoning

Posted on May 1, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Miami Herald

 

ACAPULCO, Mexico — The toll of those sickened by apparent food poisoning at a Children’s Day festival in a Mexican village has risen to 302 children and 15 adults. The health department in southern Guerrero state says 47 children and one adult remain hospitalized. The others have been released.

 

The department said Monday that all of those who fell ill ate spaghetti, beef, salsa and cake at a grade school celebration in the hamlet of Los Organos, on the outskirts of the Pacific coast resort of Acapulco. The adults who fell ill were teachers, parents and school staff.

 

State health authorities are analysing food served at the party to determine exactly what caused the food poisoning.

 

 

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

Listeria Subverts Immune Response

Posted on May 1, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Science Daily

Listeria, one of the most deadly causes of bacterial food poisoning, subverts a normally protective immune response to spread its infection more effectively, according to new research at National Jewish Health. Immunologists Laurel Lenz, PhD, Peter Henson, PhD, and their colleagues report online April 26, 2012, in the journal Immunity that production of nitric oxide (NO) by activated macrophages, which is normally thought of as an infection-fighting response, actually helps Listeria monocytogenes to more efficiently disseminate between infected and neighboring uninfected cells.

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Posted in Bacteria, Food Poisoning, Food Technology, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Listeria, Listeria monocytogenes, Microbiology, Pathogen, Research

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FSA – eNews Letter

Posted on May 1, 2012 by | Leave a comment

FSA

The April edition of FSA e-News highlights how the Agency is making it easier than ever to eat safely and eat well in the immediate future, during the Olympics and in the longer term.

With 88 days to go until the start of London 2012, food businesses in the Olympic areas are already ahead of the game in terms of food safety.

The Agency’s Play it Safe campaign, which aims to ensure the safety of the food bought, cooked and eaten during London 2012, kicked off recently with a high profile launch. Stakeholders are being encouraged to spread the campaign messages, and a toolkit and newsletter have been made available to explain how they can get involved.

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Posted in Bacteria, Food Standards Agency, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Microbiology

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FSA – French Cheese – Brucellosis Warning

Posted on April 30, 2012 by | Leave a comment

FSA

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) is warning people who may have bought any of three particular brands of reblochon cheese in France to discard them. The French authorities have issued an alert about potential contamination with the bacteria that causes brucellosis.

The cheeses, sold under the brand names of Le Campagnard, Gaston, and Pernet Mugnier Christian, are being recalled in France following the detection of the bacteria Brucella in the unpasteurised milk used to make them.

They were sold from February to April 2012 in 450g packs. The affected cheeses were not supplied to any businesses in the UK. However, the FSA is warning people who may have travelled to France and bought the products there, not to consume them.

If you have already eaten any of these cheeses and feel unwell, you should seek medical attention, and tell your doctor what you have eaten. No other raw milk cheeses, apart from those named, are implicated in this warning.

Brucellosis is a disease that usually affects livestock, including cattle. Infection of humans occurs through contact with infected animals or consuming unpasteurised (raw) milk or dairy products.

Brucellosis in humans is very rare in the UK, with most cases acquired abroad. Symptoms in humans vary. Some people experience no symptoms, or only a mild flu-like illness, while others experience chronic fever, which can recur for several years. Symptoms can occur up to a month after exposure.

 

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Posted in Bacteria, Brucellosis, Food Illness, Food Poisoning, Food Safety Alert, Food Standards Agency, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Microbiology

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England and Wales Restaurant Risks Research

Posted on April 30, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Cambridge Journals Online

The food service sector continues to be the most common setting for reported foodborne disease outbreaks in England and Wales. Using restaurant-associated foodborne outbreaks reported in England and Wales from 1992 to 2009, cuisine-specific risk factors were examined. Of 677 restaurant outbreaks, there were 11 795 people affected, 491 hospitalizations, and seven deaths; and Chinese, Indian, British and Italian cuisines were the most commonly implicated (26%, 16%, 13% and 10%, respectively). Salmonella spp. accounted for most outbreaks of all cuisine types, and particularly Chinese (76%, 133/175) and Italian (55%, 38/69). Poultry meat was the most frequently implicated food vehicle in outbreaks associated with Indian (30%), Chinese (21%), and British (18%) cuisines while for Italian cuisine, desserts and cakes were more frequently implicated (33%). Rice dishes were also a common outbreak food vehicle in those restaurants serving Chinese (22%) and Indian (16%) cuisine. Cross-contamination was the biggest contributory factor associated with Chinese (46%), British (33%) and Indian (30%) cuisines whereas inadequate cooking (38%) and use of raw shell eggs in lightly cooked or uncooked food (35%) were more often associated with Italian cuisine. Over the surveillance period, the proportion of Salmonella Enteritidis PT4 outbreaks in restaurants serving Chinese cuisine significantly decreased (P<0·0001) and this was mirrored by an increase in S. Enteritidis non-PT4 outbreaks (P<0·0001). Despite this change in proportion, contributory factors such as cross-contamination have continued to cause outbreaks throughout the 18 years. The results show that by stratifying the risks associated with restaurants by cuisine type, specific evidence of food control failures can be used to target foodborne illness reduction strategies.

 

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

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US Salmonella paratyphi Outbreak

Posted on April 30, 2012 by | Leave a comment

WYFF4COM

More than two dozen people have become ill in a salmonella outbreak in Western North Carolina, according to the Buncombe County Department of Health.

The Department of Health is investigating an outbreak of Salmonella Paratyphi B infection in Buncombe County.

Communicable disease nurses and environmental health specialists are conducting interviews with people who currently have or have had the infection, reviewing laboratory reports and inspecting food sources that may be linked to the outbreak.

Communicable disease experts from the North Carolina Division of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as food specialists from the N.C. Department of Agriculture, are assisting with the investigations.

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Posted in Bacillus cereus, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Poisoning, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Microbiology, outbreak, Pathogen, Salmonella

Soya Bean Sprouts Recall Listeria monocytogenes

Posted on April 28, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Listeria Blog

The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) announced today that Henry’s Farm Inc. of Woodford, VA is recalling all packages of Soybean Sprouts because they may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections to individuals with weakened immune systems.

No illness has been reported to date.

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Posted in Bacteria, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Listeria, Listeria monocytogenes, Microbiology, Pathogen, Recall

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