The leading cause of foodborne disease is making its mark this winter. Just this February, Norovirus caused more than 200 attendees at a cheerleader camp in Washington State to become ill. In St. Maarten, a cruise ship returned to port as 31 became ill. In Virginia, an elementary school was closed because so many students were ill. And in New Jersey, more than 400 college students become ill at three universities located in the same county.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is warning the public not to consume the refrigerated cold smoked sockeye salmon trim products described in the link above because the products may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. There have been no reported illnesses associated with the consumption of these products.
The public warning issued on February 24, 2012has been expanded to include an additional product and distribution information.
The affected product, Country Morning brand Beef Burgers, is sold frozen, in a 2.27 kg package bearing the UPC 057316 086624 and one of the following codes: 12861 EST 761, 22861 EST 761, 32861 EST 761 or 42861 EST 761.
The Country Morning Beef Burgers product has been distributed to Co-op and TGP grocery stores in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Northwest Territories, Yukon and Nunavut.
There has been one reported illness associated with the consumption of this product.
Four cases of salmonella are being investigated by Hamilton’s public health department.Public health says it believes the cases are connected to the Eat a Pita restaurant on Main Street East at Kenilworth Avenue.
The most recent outbreak of food borne illness linked to raw sprouts is a restaurant-based outbreak of E. coli O26 associated with consumption of raw clover sprouts served on sandwiches at certain Jimmy John’s locations in Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas and Wisconsin.
Like other restaurant chains and some large food retailers, Jimmy John’s has now removed sprouts from its menu offerings because of the inherent risk of pathogen contamination in this area of fresh produce.
Researchers from the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science have developed a new cell phone–based fluorescent imaging and sensing platform that can detect the presence of the bacterium Escherichia coli in food and water. The engineers combined antibody functionalized glass capillaries with quantum dots (semiconductors often used for medical imaging) as signal reporters to specifically detect E. coli particles in liquid samples using a lightweight, compact attachment to an existing cell-phone camera.
US food safety researchers are exploring the combined use of infrared and hot air as a tool in the pasteurisation of almonds – a method to prevent potential Salmonella contamination.
Pathogenic Vibrio parahaemolyticus in prawn has been a major cause of saefood-borne infection outbreaks. An understanding of its behavior in prawn helps ensure safety of the seafood consumption. The objective of this investigation was to understand the pathogenic V. parahaemolyticus behavior in non-sterile prawn in a laboratory and frozen food factory as responding to temperature. The behavior was observed in a laboratory. It was found that in the laboratory this pathogen grew in a temperature range of 15 to 44 °C but died in -20 to 10 °C. The primary Baranyi and modified Gompertz models excellently explained the pathogenic growth and death characteristics, respectively. The effects of temperature on the primary-model parameters were well described by the Kohler, Ratkowsky, asymptotic and non-linear Arrhenius models. The behavior of the pathogen was also observed in a freezing process line. The pathogen responded to temperature in a similar manner to that in the laboratory results although the actual line process involved more influencing factors. Therefore, the laboratory results of temperature effect on the pathogen behavior can provide a good guideline of safety for process design and control of the seafood. The response similarity was beneficial in the information usage of pathogen behavior in prawn which was satisfactorily interchangeable between these two environments.
Highlights
► V. parahaemolyticus, problematic pathogen, grew in prawn at ≥15°C but died at ≤10°C. ► The pathogen in laboratory and frozen factory showed a similar response to temperature. ► The pathogen behavior in laboratory can be a guideline of process-line design for safety. ► The primary and secondary models of growth and death prediction were identified.
A novel type of environmentally friendly packaging with antibacterial activity was developed from lauric arginate (LAE)-coating of polylactic acid (PLA) films after surface activation using a corona discharge. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM)-based analysis of the LAE/PLA films confirmed the successful coating of LAE on the PLA surface. The mechanical properties of the LAE/PLA films with different levels of LAE-coating (0% to 2.6%[w/w]) were essentially the same as those of the neat PLA film. The antibacterial activity of the LAE/PLA films against Listeria monocytogenes and Salmonella enterica Serovar Typhimurium (S. Typhimurium) was confirmed by a qualitative modified agar diffusion assay and quantitative JIS Z 2801:2000 method. Using the LAE/PLA film as a food-contact antimicrobial packaging for cooked cured ham, as a model system, suggested a potential application to inhibit L. monocytogenes and S. Typhimurium on ham with a 0.07% (w/w) LAE coating on the PLA when high transparency is required, as evidenced from the 2 to 3 log CFU/tested film lower pathogen growth after 7 d storage but even greater antibacterial activity is obtained with a LAE coating level of 2.6% (w/w) but at the cost of a reduced transparency of the finished product. This article shows how we can simply develop functional green packaging of PLA for food with effective and efficient antimicrobial activity by use of LAE coating on the surface via corona discharge.
In Pennsylvania, where a raw milk Campylobacter outbreak has sickened at least 77 people during the last month, dairies – even those selling raw milk, are only required to test for pathogens twice a year, according to Penn State Food Safety, a blog by the Penn State College of Agricultural Services.
Pasteurisation kills harmful pathogens, but raw milk is unpasteurized and can sicken consumers if tainted. Since 2006, there have been seven raw milk outbreaks involving five or more people, sickening 284 Pennsylvanians. In addition, there were nine clusters of five or fewer cases during that same period.
Posted in Campylobacter, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Safety, Food Testing, Microbiology, Pathogen
Tagged raw milk
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and Charcuterie La Tour Eiffel are warning the public not to consume the Tour Eiffel brand Parisian Cooked Ham described below because the product may be contaminated with dangerous bacteria or parasites.
The affected product, Tour Eiffel brand Parisian Cooked Ham was sold from deli counters at certain Sobeys stores (e.g., IGA, IGA extra) and Metro stores (e.g., Metro, Marché Richelieu), as well as certain independent grocers and delicatessens in Quebec between February 10 and 21, 2012.
Some deli packages may not bear a label indicating brand or date information. Consumers who cannot determine the original product identity are advised to check with their retailer to determine if the product is affected.
There have been no reported illnesses associated with the consumption of this product.
