Category Archives: Microbiology Risk

USA – FDA – Core Outbreak Table – Investigations of Foodborne Illness Outbreaks

Posted on April 6, 2023 by | Leave a comment

FDA

Date
Posted		 Ref Pathogen
or
Cause of
Illness		 Product(s)
Linked to
Illnesses
(if any)		 Total
Case
Count
Status
3/29/2023 1141 Salmonella Infantis Raw Flour See
CDC
Investigation
Notice		 Active
3/8/2023 1144 Salmonella Hartford Not Yet
Identified		 53 Active
3/1/2023 1143 Hepatitis A Virus Frozen Organic
Strawberries		 See
Outbreak
Advisory		 Active
2/15/2023 1123 Listeria
monocytogenes		 Not Yet
Identified		 See
CDC
Investigation
Notice		 Active
11/9/2022 1127 Listeria
monocytogenes		 Enoki
Mushrooms		 See
Outbreak
Advisory		 Active

Leave a comment

Posted in FDA, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, Hepatitis A, Listeria, Listeria Enoki Mushrooms, Listeria monocytogenes, microbial contamination, Microbial growth, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk, Salmonella

Hong Kong – Roving Exhibitions on Food Safety in 2023

Posted on April 6, 2023 by | Leave a comment

CFS

Roving Exhibitions on Food Safety in 2023

The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) holds a series of exhibitions across the territory every year.  Panels covering different topics such as food safety and nutrition are shown to enhance public knowledge on how to make safe and suitable food choices.

FOUR roving exhibitions will be held in the following venues in April 2023. Details are as follows:

Date Time Venue Theme
4/4 10am – 4pm Causeway Bay Market Nutrition Labelling; Prevention of Cross-contamination; Take Notice of Eating Scallops
12/4  10am – 4pm Smithfield Market Nutrition Labelling; Prevention of Cross-contamination; Trans Fats
21/4  10am – 4pm Tsuen Wan Government Offices Nutrition Labelling; Ciguatoxins; Enhance Food Traceability, Strengthen Food Safety
26/4  10am – 4pm Sai Wan Ho Market Nutrition Labelling; Genetically Modified Food; Acrylamide

New arrangements of the exhibitions will be announced regularly and members of the public are welcome to visit the CFS website.  For any enquiries, please contact our Communication Resource Unit at 2381 6096.

Leave a comment

Posted in Food Microbiology Testing, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Safety Management, Food Safety Regulations, food safety training, microbial contamination, Microbial growth, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk

RASFF Alerts – Animal Feed- Salmonella -Soybean Meal – Sunflower Meal – Granulated Wheat Bran

Posted on April 6, 2023 by | Leave a comment

RASFF

Salmonella in soybean meal from the Netherlands in Finland

RASFF

Salmonella in sunflower meal extracted from Serbia in Austria

RASFF

Salmonella Enteritidis in granulated wheat bran from Ukraine in Poland

Leave a comment

Posted in Animal Feed, Animal Feed Salmonella, Animal Feed Testing, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology Blog, microbial contamination, Microbial growth, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk, RASFF

UK – FSA and FSS share findings from the evaluation of the recall system

Posted on April 5, 2023 by | Leave a comment

Food Safety News

An updated food recall system in the United Kingdom has improved the situation but there are still areas to develop and things to consider for the future, according to an evaluation.

In 2016 and 2017, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and Food Standards Scotland (FSS) held a review to improve the way food is recalled. This resulted in changes to the withdrawals and recalls system, including new guidance, a revised point-of-sale notice template for shops, and additional training for food businesses.

RSM UK Consulting was commissioned by FSA and FSS in 2021 to evaluate the development of the new system. This included a desk review, interviews with those who worked on the updated system, case studies of real recalls, looking at hypothetical scenarios, and consumer focus groups.

Those who worked on the new traceability, withdrawals, and recalls guidance said it was an improvement on the old document. However, one concern was that smaller businesses have fewer resources to implement the new processes and understand the legalities behind them. Lack of resources was also discussed as a barrier by local authorities.

Leave a comment

Posted in Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, food recall, microbial contamination, Microbial growth, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk, Recall

USA – Consumer Reports compiles a list of 10 ‘risky foods’ to watch out for

Posted on April 5, 2023 by | Leave a comment

Food Safety News

Consumer Reports is out with a new analysis of what it describes as risky foods consumers should know about.

The list was compiled after the organization looked at data from 2017 through 2022. The researchers focused on widely consumed foods that had recalls during the study period. They did not include recalled food related to allergens or extraneous materials. The report ranked recalls based on how many people died or became ill, as well as how widespread the outbreaks were and how many times a food was recalled.

The 10 foods that made the list are:

  • Leafy greens
  • Deli cheese and meat
  • Ground beef
  • Onions
  • Turkey
  • Chicken
  • Papayas
  • Peaches
  • Cantaloupe
  • Flour

“We aren’t saying people need to avoid these foods entirely, said Brian Ronholm, director of food policy at Consumer Reports, who lead the analysis.

“After all, these foods are usually safe and many of them are in fact import parts of a healthy diet.” Instead, he says, the list underscores the “importance of following best food safety practices with all of your foods, including knowing how to track and respond to food recalls when they happen.”

Leave a comment

Posted in Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, microbial contamination, Microbial growth, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk

Vanuatu: Dozens of ciguatera cases reported since the beginning of the year

Posted on April 5, 2023 by | Leave a comment

Outbreak News Today

The Vanuatu Ministry of Health reports that from January 1 to March 19, 27 ciguatera fish poisoning cases were recorded, all were clinically diagnosed.

The cases were distributed as follows: Seventeen (17) cases from Efate, 6 cases from Maewo, 2 cases from Ambrym, 1 from Ambae, 1 from Pentecost and 1 from Santo.

No deaths have been recorded.

From the cases reported, 69% of the cases consumed reef fish – not specified, 16 consumed Snapper and 15% consumed grouper.

More than 400 species of fish, including barracuda, black grouper, blackfin snapper, cubera snapper, dog snapper, greater amberjack, hogfish, horse-eye jack, king mackerel, and yellowfin grouper have been implicated in this food borne illness that’s relatively common in several areas of the world.

Leave a comment

Posted in Algal Toxin, Ciguatera, Ciguatera Poisoning, Decontamination Microbial, Dinoflagellates, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Toxin, Marine Biotoxin, microbial contamination, Microbial growth, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk, Toxin

Research – Major pathogens rise in Ireland in 2022

Posted on April 5, 2023 by | Leave a comment

Food Safety News

Campylobacter, Salmonella, E. coli, and Listeria infections all increased in Ireland in 2022, according to the latest figures.

Data from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC), which is part of the Health Service Executive (HSE), shows the number of reports for the four pathogens rose compared to 2021.

Notifications of Salmonellosis doubled and the number of E. coli infections passed 1,000.

Full reports on these four pathogens and for outbreaks have not been published since 2018 because of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic response and limited capacity at HPSC.

Campylobacter infections went up from 3,147 in 2021 to 3,619 in 2022.

Salmonella cases doubled from 173 in 2021 to 342 in 2022 but this is similar to 2018 and 2019 levels.

More than 1,000 Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) notifications were noted. Up from 962 in 2021.

A total of 18 listeriosis cases were recorded, up from 15 in 2021. Fourteen were men and four were women. Fifteen cases were in the over-65 age group while two were less than 1 to 4 years old.

Figures also show three cases of Bacillus cereus foodborne infection or intoxication compared to none in 2021.

The published data, which covers 2018 to 2022, reveals two cases of botulism, although it is unclear if food was the cause. There was also one report of brucellosis in 2022. All other years reported no notifications of these diseases.

There were 17 yersiniosis cases in 2022 compared to 18 in 2021. Cryptosporidiosis declined from 845 in 2021 to 566 in 2022.

Shigellosis went up from 70 in 2021 to 157 in 2022. Norovirus also increased from 439 in 2021 to 990 in 2022.

Leave a comment

Posted in botulism, Brucellosis, Campylobacter, Cryptosporidium, E.coli, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, Listeria, microbial contamination, Microbial growth, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk, Norovirus, Salmonella, Shigella, Yersinia

Research – What is the History of Outbreaks Linked to Flour?

Posted on April 5, 2023 by | Leave a comment

Food Poisoning Bulletin

With the newest identified outbreak on the FDA CORE Outbreak Investigation Table a Salmonella Infantis outbreak linked to flour, the question arises: What is the history of outbreaks linked to flour?

Because flour is dry and seems so inert, many people assume that it could not harbor pathogens. But flour is a raw agricultural product, and can be contaminated in the field by birds and animals, during harvest, during transportation, and during processing. Many pathogens can survive with very little water. And no “kill step,” that is, heating the grain to a temperature high enough to destroys pathogens, is used when flour is processed.

That’s why food safety experts warn consumers to be careful handling flour, and to avoid eating raw cookie dough and cake batter made with untreated flour. While you can buy heat-treated flour, a Purdue researcher says that home treated flour may not be safe.

Leave a comment

Posted in Decontamination Microbial, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, microbial contamination, Microbial growth, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk

Wales – Duo handed suspended sentences for food safety failings – Listeria monocytogenes

Posted on April 3, 2023 by | Leave a comment

Food Safety News

Two people have been given suspended prison sentences for their roles in food safety breaches by a seafood company in Wales.

Colin James Brown and Donna Brown, who ran Shores Seafood in Monkton, Pembroke, are also prohibited from managing a food business indefinitely.

Colin Brown was sentenced to nine months in jail, suspended for two years, and 200 hours of unpaid work. Donna Brown was given six months in prison suspended for two years and 15 days of rehabilitation activity. The prosecution was brought by Pembrokeshire County Council.

Sentencing took place at Swansea Crown Court in late March, after the couple pleaded guilty at earlier hearings to four offenses.

These were failing to take action to protect food from the risk of contamination; placing unsafe food on the market; failing to comply with a Remedial Action Notice and operating the business without approval after permission to supply seafood was suspended.

Leave a comment

Posted in Decontamination Microbial, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, Listeria, Listeria monocytogenes, microbial contamination, Microbial growth, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk

Norovirus confirmed on three recent cruises

Posted on April 3, 2023 by | Leave a comment

Outbreak News Today

Celebrity Cruises’ Celebrity Equinox’s March 9–March 18, 2023 voyage had 136 illnesses among passengers and crew.

Celebrity Cruises’ Celebrity Constellation March 6–March 17, 2023 voyage had 96 passengers and crew sickened with norovirus.

Princess Cruises’ Ruby Princess February 26–March 5, 2023 voyage had 318 cases of vomiting and diarrhea from norovirus.

In 2023 to date, nine cruise ship voyages have had outbreaks investigated by the CDC. Four had norovirus as the etiology, while the other five remain unknown.

Norovirus is a highly contagious viral illness that often goes by other names, such as viral gastroenteritis, stomach flu, and food poisoning.

The symptoms include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and some stomach cramping. Sometimes people additionally have a low-grade fever, chills,headache, muscle aches, and a general sense of tiredness. The illness often begins suddenly, and the infected person may feel very sick. In most people, the illness is self-limiting with symptoms lasting for about 1 or 2 days. In general, children experience more vomiting than adults do.

Leave a comment

Posted in food bourne outbreak, Food Illness, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Virus, Foodborne Illness, foodborne outbreak, foodbourne outbreak, Illness, microbial contamination, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk, Norovirus, outbreak