One in ten sausages may carry the hepatitis virus: Cases of rare deadly strain have rocketed 40% in a year.Once considered very rare, cases have risen by nearly 40 per cent in a year, 1 in 50 of those infected will die, rising to one in five pregnant women.
Sausages most dangerous pork product – they contain liver meat
Dairy products made by the New Zealand company Fonterra that were at the center of a global contamination scare this month did not contain a bacterium that could cause botulism and posed no food safety threat, New Zealand officials said on Wednesday.
The Ministry for Primary Industries said tests showed that whey protein concentrate manufactured by the world’s largest dairy processor contained Clostridium sporogenes, which cannot cause botulism but which at elevated levels can be associated with food spoiling.
Initial tests conducted by Fonterra and a New Zealand government research institute had indicated the presence of Clostridium botulinum, raising fears that infant formula and sports drinks made from the product and widely exported could be dangerous.
The botulism scare caused a recall of products made by multinational brands that may have contained the whey protein in markets like China, Southeast Asia and the Middle East. It also prompted bans in Russia and Sri Lanka.
Ottawa, September 17, 2013 – The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and Gort’s Gouda Cheese Farm (EST 4478) are warning the public not to consume cheese products described below because they may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7.
This recall is the result of an ongoing food safety investigation initiated as a result of a recent outbreak investigation. There may be recalls of additional products as the investigation at this facility continues.
All sizes of the raw milk cheeses listed in the link above are affected by this recall.
These affected products were sold at the manufacturer’s outlet, at retail stores in Alberta and British Columbia, and through internet sale from May 27 to September 14, 2013, inclusive.
Lot codes 122 to 138 are affected by this recall.
Some product packages may not bear a lot code or indicate that the cheese was made with raw milk. These products were also sold clerk-served from deli counters with or without a label or coding. Consumers who are unsure if they have purchased the affected product are advised to contact their retailer.
There have been reported illnesses associated with the consumption of these products.
The manufacturer, Gort’s Gouda Cheese Farm, Salmon Arm, BC is voluntarily recalling the affected products from the marketplace. The CFIA is monitoring the effectiveness of the recall.
Posted in Bacteria, CFIA, E.coli O157, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Safety, Food Testing, Laboratory, Listeria, Listeria monocytogenes, Microbiology, Pathogen, Recall
Tagged canadian food inspection, canadian food inspection agency cfia, food, raw milk cheeses, restaurants, salmon arm bc
The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) is an EU agency [1] with a mandate to operate surveillance networks and to identify, assess, and communicate current and emerging threats to human health from communicable diseases. The agency became operational in 2005. Initially, data were collected for 49 diseases (2008), with three more added in 2012. All data are entered in ECDC’s database system, known as the European Surveillance System (TESSy). Epidemiological overviews of all diseases are provided in the ECDC’s Annual Epidemiological Report. The surveillance of salmonellosis, campylobacteriosis and Shiga toxin/verotoxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC/VTEC) infection was carried out until 2007 by an EU-funded dedicated surveillance network, Enter-net, which was hosted by the Health Protection Agency in the United Kingdom. In October 2007, the coordination of Enter-net was transferred to ECDC and Enter-net is now under the auspices of the Programme of Food- and Waterborne Diseases and Zoonoses (FWD). After the transfer, the scope was broadened to also cover listeriosis, yersiniosis and shigellosis. For the six priority diseases, surveillance was developed further in close collaboration with nominated disease experts, epidemiologists and microbiologists. This report is the first dedicated epidemiological report on these six diseases, offering a detailed analysis for the years 2006 to 2009. The intended readership includes public health and food safety professionals, policymakers, scientists, and the general public.
Posted in ECDC, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Technology, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Microbiology, Pathogen, Poisoning, Research, Uncategorized
Tagged food safety professionals, health protection agency, surveillance networks, waterborne diseases
Food Alert – Not to Consume Milk Formula Produced from Ingredients Suspected of Contamination with Clostridium Botulinum
| Issue Date | 2013-08-06 | |
| Source of Information | The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) | |
| Food Product | Growing up formula [Updated on 17 September 2013: Recall Completed] | |
| Name of Importer | ||
| Product name and Description | Product name: Cow & Gate Happy Kid 3 (growing up formula for 1 to 3 years old) Importer: Danone Baby Nutrition (HK) Limited Package: 900 grammes Place of origin: New Zealand Batch: 3178 and 3179 Best before date: 27 June 2015 and 28 June 2015
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| Reason For Issuing Alert |
The concerned milk formula was produced from ingredients suspected to be contaminated with Clostridium botulinum | |
| Action Taken by the Centre for Food Safety |
– The concerned importer has taken the initiative to recall the relevant product. The CFS will monitor closely the recall. – The CFS will continue to keep close liaison with the New Zealand authority and the local trade, keep an eye on the latest development, and take appropriate actions whenever necessary. The CFS will also report the latest situation to the public to keep them abreast of the most updated situation. |
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| Advice to the Trade |
– The trade should stop sale of the product. | |
| Advice to Consumers | – Members of the public who had purchased the product should immediately stop feeding it to their young children. | |
| Further Information | – The CFS press release – Members of the public can call CFS’ designated hotline 3978 0600 operating between 9am and 9pm today (6 August) should they have any enquiries about the affected product. It will operate between 9am and 6pm from 7 to 9 August. – The Department of Health has set up a hotline 2125 1111 for public enquiries. Operating hours are from 9am to 9pm today (6 August), and 9am to 6pm from 7 to 9 August. |
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The number of antimicrobial-resistant Salmonella serotypes hasn’t increased drastically in recent years, but drug-resistant Salmonella continues to pose a public health threat in the United States, particularly as resistance spreads across classes of drugs, necessitates the use of more expensive drugs, makes treatment less effective, and, in worse-case scenarios, leaves infections untreatable.
A recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study identified increasing resistance to a class of drugs called Cephalosporins, which are commonly used to treat severe Salmonella infections in adults and are the main drug of choice when treating children, for whom the fluoroquinolone class of drugs is not recommended. Currently, about five percent of Salmonella strains are resistant to Cephalosporins, mostly in cases of Salmonella Heidelberg and Salmonella Newport.
Posted in Antibiotic Resistance, Bacteria, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Laboratory, Microbiology, Pathogen, Research, Salmonella
Tagged case scenarios, classes of drugs, food safety news, public health threat, salmonella infections, salmonella strains
Traditional methods of food preservation, such as pickling, have reemerged as popular approaches for home and commercial food processing. The process of pickling hard-cooked eggs (HCE) can be an effective method of preventing the growth and survival of pathogenic microorganisms. Because of the variety of pickling processes, HCE manufacturers must validate their pickling process for Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval and demonstrate 5-log reductions of pathogens associated with the product. In this study, a rapid one-step pickling process was evaluated for its ability to reduce Salmonella spp., Listeria monocytogenes, Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli O157:H7 inoculated onto HCE for 14 days at room temperature. All pathogens inoculated onto HCE were reduced by (>5.0 logs) within 24 h and were undetectable following enrichment. The data obtained in this study may be of interest to regulatory officials and processors of HCE seeking pathogen reduction validation for their products.
Posted in Bacteria, E.coli O157, Food Hygiene, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Listeria monocytogenes, Microbiology, Pathogen, Salmonella, Staphylococcus aureus
Tagged escherichia coli o157, hard cooked eggs, methods of food preservation, research, science
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and Société coopérative agricole de l’Île-aux-Grues are warning the public not to consume the Le Canotier de l’Isle cheese described below because the product may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes.
RASFF -Shigatoxin-producing Escherichia coli in chilled boneless beef (Bos taurus) from Brazil in the Netherlands
RASFF -Shigatoxin-producing Escherichia coli in chilled beef (Bos taurus) from Brazil in the Netherlands
RASFF -shigatoxin-producing Escherichia coli (presence /25g) in chilled bovine meat from Brazil in the Netherlands
RASFF -shigatoxin-producing Escherichia coli (presence /25g) in boneless beef (Bos taurus) from Argentina in the Netherlands
RASFF -High count of Escherichia coli (16000 MPN/100g) in mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis) from Italy
RASFF -High count of Escherichia coli (1300; 70; 1100; 80; <10 CFU/g) in fresh spinach from Sri Lanka in Norway
RASFF -Histamine (414; 345 mg/kg – ppm) in yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacore) from Sri Lanka in Italy
RASFF -hepatitis A virus in frozen red berries mix from Poland, via France in Italy
RASFF -Diarrhoeic Shellfish Poisoning (DSP) toxins – okadaic acid (221.3 µg/kg – ppb) in live mussels (Mytilus Galloprovincialis) from Spain in Italy
