Category Archives: Microbiology Investigations

USA – FDA Warning Letters – The Famous Lartigue Seafood

FDA

The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) inspected your seafood processing facility located at 100 Plantation Pointe, Fairhope, AL 36532 on October 19, 20 and 25, 2021. Our inspection found you have serious violations of the Seafood Hazard Regulations, Part 123 (21 CFR Part 123(g), failure of a seafood processor to have and implement a HACCP plan that complies with this section or otherwise operate in accordance with requirements of Part 123, renders the fish or fishery products adulterated within the meaning of section 402(a)(4) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (the Act), 21 U.S.C. § 342 (a)(4). Accordingly, your seafood products are adulterated because they have been prepared, packed, or held under insanitary conditions whereby they may have been rendered injurious to health. You may find the Act, the seafood HACCP regulation and the 4th Edition of the Fish and Fishery Products Hazards and Controls Guidance (the Hazards Guide) through links on FDA’s home page at www.fda.gov.External Link Disclaimer

FDA’s inspection resulted in the issuance of a FORM FDA 483, Inspectional Observations, listing deviations found during our inspection. We received your response, via email on October 25, 2021. After reviewing the inspectional findings and your response to the observations listed in the FORM FDA483, we are issuing this letter to advise you of FDA’s concerns and provide detailed information describing the findings at your facility.

Your significant violations were as follows:

1. You must conduct or have conducted for you a hazard analysis for each kind of fish and fishery product that you produce to determine whether there are food safety hazards that are reasonably likely to occur, and you must have and implement a written HACCP plan to control any food safety hazards that are reasonably likely to occur, to comply with 21 CFR 123.6(a), and (b). However, you do not have a HACCP Plan for fresh sushi-grade salmon to control the parasite and environmental hazards.

In your response sent on October 25, 2021 you state a HACCP plan will be devised once you complete a seafood HACCP certification course. However, you did not provide documentation of enrollment into a seafood HACCP course. Additionally, no timeline was provided for completion of your HACCP plan.

2. You must maintain sanitation control records that, at a minimum, document monitoring and corrections set out in 21 CFR 123.11(b), to comply with 21 CFR 123.11(c). Specifically, you do not have sanitation control records that document the monitoring of the following key areas of sanitation:

a. Condition and cleanliness of food contact surfaces, such as tables and utensils.
b. Prevention of cross-contamination from insanitary objects.
c. Maintenance of hand washing, hand sanitizing, and toilet facilities.
d. Protection of food, food packaging material, and food contact surfaces from adulteration.
e. Proper labeling, storage and use of toxic compounds.
f. Control of employee health conditions.

In your response sent on October 25, 2021 you state that you monitor sanitation controls utilizing daily and monthly logs. However, no supporting documentation was provided.

3. To comply with 21 CFR 123.10, you must have an individual who has successfully completed training in the application of HACCP principles to fish and fishery product processing that is at least equivalent to that received under a standardized curriculum recognized as adequate by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration or who may otherwise be qualified through job experience to perform the following functions: (1) the development of the HACCP plan, as required by 21 CFR 123.6(b); (2) the reassessment and modification of the HACCP plan in accordance with the corrective action procedures specified in 21 CFR 123.7(c)(5); (3) the reassessment and modification of the HACCP plan in accordance with the verification activities specified in 21 CFR 123.8(a)(1);(4) the reassessment and modification of the hazard analysis in accordance with the verification activities specified in 21 CFR 123.8(c); and (5) perform the record review required by 21 CFR 123.8(a)(3).

In your response sent on October 25, 2021 you state that you will be attending an online seafood HACCP certification course; however, no documentation of enrollment into the course was provided.

You should respond in writing within fifteen (15) working days from your receipt of this letter. Your response should outline the specific actions you are taking to correct these violations. Your response should include documentation reflecting the corrections you made, such as a copy of your HACCP plan. You should also provide five (5) consecutive days of completed monitoring records to demonstrate implementation of your HACCP plan.

Research – What you need to know during a Listeria Outbreak –

Food Poison Journal

There is a video to watch in the link above.

Ingested by mouth, Listeria is among the most virulent foodborne pathogens, with up to 20% of clinical infections resulting in death. These bacteria primarily cause severe illness and death in persons with immature or compromised immune systems.

Except for the transmission of mother to fetus, human-to-human transmission of Listeria is not known to occur. Infection is caused almost exclusively by the ingestion of the bacteria, most often through the consumption of contaminated food.

Adults can get listeriosis by eating food contaminated with Listeria, but babies can be born with listeriosis if their mothers eat contaminated food during pregnancy. The mode of transmission of Listeria to the fetus is either transplacental via the maternal blood stream or ascending from a colonized genital tract. Infections during pregnancy can cause premature delivery, miscarriage, stillbirth, or serious health problems for the newborn.

Listeria is a common presence in nature, found widely in such places as water, soil, infected animals, human and animal feces, raw and treated sewage, leafy vegetables, effluent from poultry and meat processing facilities, decaying corn and soybeans, improperly fermented silage, and raw (unpasteurized) milk.

Foods commonly identified as sources of Listeria infection include improperly pasteurized fluid milk, cheeses (particularly soft-ripened varieties, such as traditional Mexican cheeses, Camembert and ricotta), ice cream, raw vegetables, fermented raw-meat sausages, raw and cooked poultry, and cooked, ready-to-eat (RTE) sliced meats—often referred to as “deli meats,) smoked finfish, smoked shellfish and packaged fruits and vegetables.

Cruise ship outbreak: More than 100 sickened on recent Viking Sea voyage – Cause Unknown

Outbreak News Today

The Centers for Disease Control Prevention Vessel Sanitation Program (CDC-VSP) reported that 118 passengers and crew on a recent voyage of the Viking Cruises, Viking Sea, were sickened with diarrhoea due to a gastrointestinal illness of unknown etiology.

The voyage, which took place November 29–December 13, 2021, resulted in 114 of 640 (17.8%) passengers and 4 of 404 (1.0%) crew members sickened.

In response to the outbreak, Viking Cruises and the crew aboard the ship reported the following actions:

  • Increased cleaning and disinfection procedures according to the ship’s outbreak prevention and response plan.
  • Collected stool specimens from passenger and/or crew gastrointestinal illness cases and sent specimens for testing.
  • Sent daily reports of gastrointestinal illness cases to VSP.

VSP is monitoring the situation and the ship’s outbreak response and sanitation procedures.

Australia – Your poultry doesn’t need a bath!

Food Safety ASN

Campylobacter kswfoodworld

The Food Safety Information Council and the Australian Chicken Meat Federation today released a consumer survey that found 49% of Australian cooks were still taking a food poisoning risk by washing raw whole chicken before cooking.

Cathy Moir, Council Chair, said washing any raw poultry is very risky as it can spread bacteria to your hands, surfaces and other foods that may not be cooked. Washing is also unnecessary as cooking poultry to 75°C in the centre of a fillet or the thickest part of the thigh will kill any bacteria.

‘We are pleased that rates of washing raw whole chicken has reduced from 60% to 49% since we last asked this question in 2011. Cooks who wash raw chicken pieces with skin on has also reduced from 52% to 43% and washing skinless pieces from 41% to 40%.

‘The survey found that chicken is a popular dish with 78% of respondents cooking whole chicken, 83% cooking chicken pieces with skin on and 88% cooking skinless pieces. But the message is that washing any raw poultry, whether it is chicken, duck, goose or the Christmas turkey, is both unsafe and unnecessary.

“As we gather this Summer with multi-generations of family and friends, here are some of our key Christmas and Summer entertaining food safety tips:

  1. Wash hands: Another recent survey has found the number of times people wash their hands each day dropped 15% since last year. Don’t forget to wash your hands with soap and water before preparing and cooking food, and after handling shell eggs, seafood, raw meat and poultry, burgers and sausages. Watch how to wash your hands correctly using the Glitterbug here
  2. Clean utensils: Ensure your tools, utensils and chopping-boards are cleaned and dried thoroughly before you start preparing your food and ensure you clean them with hot soapy water after use. Use separate chopping-boards such as red for raw meat/poultry and  green for vegetables.
  3. Don’t strain your fridge: Plan ahead and don’t buy more food than you need. It’s vital that you don’t overstock your fridge and freezer, as this won’t allow the cool air to circulate freely and perishable food cannot be adequately frozen or chilled. Less food will also help to reduce food waste.
  4. Make space: Prevent overstocking by making room in your fridge for perishable foods by removing alcohol and soft drinks and put them on ice in a container or laundry sink. This also stops guests opening the fridge so often and helps to maintain the temperature at 5°C or below. Use a fridge thermometer to check the fridge temperature.
  5. Bird or bits? Think about getting a turkey breast that is simpler to cook, rather than a whole turkey. If you do need a whole turkey ask your supermarket if they sell them fresh rather than frozen. Otherwise it must be covered and defrosted in your fridge which can take several days and also increase the risk of potentially contaminating ready to eat foods stored in the fridge.
  6. Cook poultry correctly: Cook the any poultry until a meat thermometer shows it has reached 75° C in the thickest part of the thigh and cook any stuffing separately as it will slow the cooking and the inside of the bird might not be fully cooked. Probe thermometers are readily available, easy to use and help you make sure that food has reached the right temperature.
  7. Don’t go raw. Cooked egg dishes are simple and nutritious but try to avoid raw or minimally cooked egg dishes, such as raw egg mayonnaise or aioli, eggnog or fancy desserts like tiramisu, which can be a particular risk for food poisoning. A safer alternative, if you want to serve raw egg dishes, is to use pasteurised egg products.
  8. Christmas ham won’t last forever– check the storage instructions and best before or use by date before removing the ham from its plastic wrap, cover it with clean cloth soaked in water and vinegar so it doesn’t dry out, and store it in the fridge at or below 5°C. Keep the cloth moist to stop the ham drying out too much. It is important to remember that the use by date on the original packaging won’t apply after the packaging has been removed, so check the fine print and see if the ham has a suggested shelf life after opening. Reduced salt hams are now becoming popular but will not last as long as conventional hams so think how much you are going to use in the next week or so and freeze the rest for later.
  9. Phased roll-out: Don’t leave perishable chilled foods out for more than two hours. These foods include cold meats, soft cheeses like Camembert and Brie, cold poultry, cooked seafood like prawns and smoked salmon, pâtés, sushi and salads. Put out small amounts and replace them (do not top them up) from the fridge.
  10. Get it cold, quick. Refrigerate leftovers as soon as possible. If perishable foods and leftovers have been left out of the fridge for less than two hours they should be okay to refrigerate or freeze to eat later, so long as they haven’t been sitting out on a hot day. Never eat perishable food that has been unrefrigerated for more than four hours as it may not be safe and should be thrown away. Food should not be refrigerated if it has been outside in the heat for more than an hour and discarded after it has sat outside for 2 hours.
  11. Get it right hot. Always reheat leftovers to 75°C the centre of the item or the thickest part to kill any food poisoning bugs. Use a probe thermometer or the auto reheat function of your microwave (following any prompts) to help you make sure that the leftovers have been reheated safely.

‘We would like to thank our partner Tonic Media Network who will be showing our handwashing and food safety community service announcements in GP, Pharmacy and hospital waiting rooms around Australia this Summer. Also, thanks to our member First for Training, the Australian Chicken Meat Federation and Accord for their charitable donations to fund our Summer campaign.\,” Ms Mir concluded.

Media contact: Lydia Buchtmann, Food Safety Information Council, 0407 626 688 or info@foodsafety.asn.au

Survey details:

The chicken washing survey was conducted nationally by Omnipoll amongst 1219 people aged 18+ over the period 7-12 October 2021. Respondents were drawn from the online consumer panel managed by Lightspeed Research, OmniPoll’s online partner and to help reflect the overall population distribution. Results were post-weighted to Australian Bureau of Statistics (2016 Census) data on education, age, sex and area.

Research – Norovirus Vaccines: Current Clinical Development and Challenges

MDPI

Noroviruses are the major viral pathogens causing epidemic and endemic acute gastroenteritis with significant morbidity and mortality. While vaccines against norovirus diseases have been shown to be of high significance, the development of a broadly effective norovirus vaccine remains difficult, owing to the wide genetic and antigenic diversity of noroviruses with multiple co-circulated variants of various genotypes. In addition, the absence of a robust cell culture system, an efficient animal model, and reliable immune markers of norovirus protection for vaccine evaluation further hinders the developmental process. Among the vaccine candidates that are currently under clinical studies, recombinant VP1-based virus-like particles (VLPs) that mimic major antigenic features of noroviruses are the common ones, with proven safety, immunogenicity, and protective efficacy, supporting a high success likelihood of a useful norovirus vaccine. This short article reviews the recent progress in norovirus vaccine development, focusing on those from recent clinical studies, as well as summarizes the barriers that are being encountered in this developmental process and discusses issues of future perspective. View Full-Text

Canada – Advice not to consume bolognese sauce packaged in glass jars and sold by the convenience store Le Tapageur

MAPAQ

Bolognese Sauce (CNW Group / Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food)

QUEBEC, Dec. 2021 / CNW Telbec / –  The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPAQ), in collaboration with the convenience store Le Tapageur, located at 591B , rue Principale in Saint-Cléophas-de-Brandon, is notifying the population not to consume the product indicated in the table below, because it has not been packaged in such a way as to ensure its safety.

Product name

Format

Targeted lot

“Bolognese sauce –
Traditional Italian”

1 litre

Units sold until
December 16, 2021

The product that is the subject of this advisory has been offered for sale until December 16, 2021, and only at the establishment listed above. The product was packaged in glass jars with metal lids and sold at room temperature. The product label includes, in addition to its name, the words “Cuisine & Tradition” and “Le Tapageur”.

The operator is voluntarily recalling the product in question. He agreed with MAPAQ to disseminate this warning as a precautionary measure. In addition, people who have this product in their possession are advised not to consume it. They must return it to the establishment where they bought it or throw it away. Even if the affected product does not present any sign of spoilage or a suspicious odor, its consumption may represent a risk to health. It should be noted that no case of illness associated with the consumption of this food has been reported to MAPAQ so far.

Iceland – Christmas without foodborne infections

MAST

There is a lot of pressure on Icelanders’ kitchens during Christmas preparations in December and during the holidays. Hygiene, cooling and proper heating of food are extremely important in order to prevent guests and household members from contracting foodborne illnesses with associated inconveniences.

Disease-causing bacteria can enter the kitchen with meat and soil that comes with vegetables and from there into other foods on the kitchen table or in the refrigerator. They can also be received in food from the person handling the food and from the equipment and utensils used in the kitchen.

Noroviruses can spread rapidly at Christmas and it is important for people with symptoms of foodborne illness to refrain from cooking. Regular hand washing reduces the risk of infection between persons or from contaminated food.

Keep in mind that:

  • Raw meat and its juices should not come into contact with ready-to-eat foods
  • Wash fruits and vegetables to prevent bacteria from entering ready-to-eat foods
  • Wash hands before cooking and after contact with raw meat and unwashed vegetables
  • Clean cutting boards and utensils immediately after use
  • Let’s organize the fridge well and keep it clean to prevent cross-contamination
  • We regularly change tablecloths, tea towels and hand towels

Bacteria multiply very rapidly under ideal conditions. At 37 ° C, one bacterium can multiply to 1000 in 3 hours and to 1 million in 6 hours. It is therefore important to store and handle food at a temperature that will prevent the rapid growth of bacteria by limiting the time that sensitive foods, such as smoked and buried fish and cold cuts, are on the table at room temperature. The greatest risk of bacterial growth is when the temperature of the food is between 5 and 60 ° C. Adequate heat treatment kills bacteria and storage at refrigerated temperatures (0-4 ° C) limits their proliferation. If food is to be kept hot, keep it at 60 ° C and when cooling heated food, make sure that it reaches 4 ° C in 3 hours. 

Citizens are encouraged to practice hygiene, proper handling and cooling of food in the kitchen so that foodborne illnesses can be prevented from spoiling the Christmas spirit.

Related material

Denmark – Danish campaign targets knowledge about cooling of hot food

Food Safety News

Most businesses correctly cool down hot food but some violations were found during inspections in Denmark.

The Danish Veterinary and Food Administration (Fødevarestyrelsen) investigated whether shops, restaurants and caterers were in control of the refrigeration and cooling process and its management.

Overall, 91 percent of the sites subject to unannounced visits knew how to cool down hot food. However, issues were found at the other 9 percent, including cooling of heat-treated food happening too slowly and procedures not being followed.

“Every year we see outbreaks of disease, which are caused by slow cooling of heat-treated foods. When this happens, it is most often because the company has produced large portions that have not cooled down quickly enough. Therefore, it is important that the amount of hot food matches the capacity of the cold storage,” said Ulrich Pinstrup, from the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration.

USA – Shigella Outbreak increases in San Diego

Food Poison Journal

Shigella - kswfoodworld

Image CDC

The County of San Diego has announced the ongoing outbreak of shigella now stands at 46 confirmed and five probable cases, with slowing cases up one from a week ago and a total of three since the 41 confirmed and seven probable cases reported in the Dec. 3 update.

The continuing investigation shows onset of illness dates between Aug. 16 and Nov. 21, 2021, with the new cases occurring between Nov.15 and Nov. 21, 2021, with symptom onset for the latest case being Nov. 27, 2021. The 51 cases in this outbreak represent 13% of the 402 total cases reported to date in San Diego County.

The County Public Health shigella website includes an epidemiological curve showing declining case numbers in recent weeks.

Research – Food Handling Concerns and Practices at-Home during the COVID-19 Pandemic by Food Security Status

Journal of Food Protection

There is limited examination about COVID-19-related food handling concerns and practices that cause chemical or microbial contamination and illness, particularly among those with food insecurity. We investigated consumer food handling concerns and practices during the COVID-19 pandemic, and whether they differed by food insecurity status. An online survey was distributed among Chicago, Illinois residents between July 15-August 21, 2020 (N=437). Independent t-tests and Fisher’s Exact tests were used to identify differences in food handling concerns and practices between those with and without food insecurity (alpha=0.05). Survey items included questions about food handling practices that were considered safe or neutral (i.e., washing hands and produce with water, sanitizing food packaging) and unsafe (i.e., using cleaning agents to wash foods, leaving perishable foods outside) using 5-point Likert-style scales or categorical responses (i.e., yes, no). Participant responses fell between “slightly” and “somewhat” concerned about contracting COVID-19 from food and food packaging (mean ± SE: 2.7±0.1). While participants reported washing their hands before eating and preparing foods at least “most of the time” (mean ± SE: 4.4 ± 0.0 and 4.5 ± 0.0, respectively), only one-third engaged in unsafe practices. The majority of participants (68%) indicated that they altered food handling practices due to the COVID-19 pandemic and received information about food safety from social media (61%).  When investigating differences in concerns and practices by food insecurity status, food insecure participants were more concerned about COVID-19 foodborne transmission for all food items (ps<0.0001) and more frequently performed unsafe based food handling practices than those with food security (ps<0.0001). Results from this study suggest more investigation is needed to understand barriers to safe food handling knowledge and practices, particularly among those with food insecurity.