Category Archives: Norovirus

Research – Bacterial Infections and Ice Cream – a Risky Mix

Posted on October 24, 2022 by | Leave a comment

Food Poison Journal

Great article to read at the above link, the table below is edited there is more information in the article.

Year State Agent Brand
2014 Washington Listeria Snoqualmie Ice Cream
2010-2015 Multistate Listeria Blue Bell
2008 Vermont E. coli O157 Homemade ice cream, unpasteurized milk
2008 Minnesota Salmonella  Homemade ice cream
2008 California E. coli O157 Consumed at a restaurant; brand or pasteurization unknown
2007 California Norovirus Ice cream with berries; berries were likely the contaminated ingredient
2007 Pennsylvania Campylobacter Homemade ice cream
2007 Minnesota Hepatitis A Ice cream or yogurt at a restaurant
2007 West Virginia Salmonella Homemade ice cream
2006 Belgium E. coli O145 Ice cream at a farm
2006 California Salmonella Homemade ice cream
2005 Multistate Salmonella  Cold Stone Creamery (cake batter was the contaminated ingredient)
1994 Multistate Salmonella Schwan’s Ice Cream – the estimated # of ill cases is 224,000!
1993 Florida Salmonella  Homemade ice cream

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Posted in E.coli O145, E.coli O157, E.coli O157:H7, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, Hepatitis A, Listeria, Listeria monocytogenes, microbial contamination, Microbial growth, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk, Norovirus, Research, Salmonella

Research – Netherlands records more than 800 outbreaks in 2021

Posted on October 14, 2022 by | Leave a comment

Food Safety News

The number of foodborne outbreaks in the Netherlands passed 800 in 2021, according to the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM).

A total of 838 outbreaks, affecting 3,517 people, were reported in 2021. This is an increase compared with 559 outbreaks in 2020 affecting 1,907 people and is also up from 735 outbreaks in 2018 and 756 in 2019.

Salmonella and Campylobacter were still responsible for most outbreaks and illnesses this past year. Norovirus was reported far less than in previous years for the second year in a row.

Figures come from the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) and Municipal Health Service (GGD).

Pathogen unknown for most outbreaks
Based on NVWA statistics, most outbreaks involved two to four and five to nine patients. Twenty or more sick people were registered in 13 outbreaks, with 71 and 79 patients in two norovirus incidents. More than 400 people were affected in one outbreak caused by an unknown pathogen. From GGD figures, in 28 outbreaks, four people died from listeriosis.

A pathogen was found in patients, food or environmental samples for only 28 of the 838 outbreaks. Experts said the percentage of outbreaks where a pathogen was identified continues to decrease but the reason for this is uncertain.

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

RASFF Alert – Norovirus – Oysters

Posted on October 7, 2022 by | Leave a comment

RASFF

Norovirus (GI/2g) in live Oysters from France in Italy

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Posted in food contamination, food handler, Food Hazard, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Pathogen, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Safety Management, Food Testing, Norovirus, Norovirus Oysters, RASFF

USA – Michigan consumers warned of produce contaminated with human waste

Posted on October 5, 2022 by | Leave a comment

Food Safety News

The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) is advising consumers not to eat any Kuntry Gardens produce or products containing produce from Kuntry Gardens of Homer, MI, because it may be contaminated with raw, untreated human waste.

All of the implicated products are expected to be labeled under the name Kuntry Gardens.

During a routine produce safety inspection, MDARD staff identified that Kuntry Gardens was using raw, untreated human waste on the fields where produce was grown for sale to local grocery stores and direct sale. The use of raw, untreated, human waste for growing commodities intended for human food is a violation of state and federal laws and regulations.

If not treated professionally, human waste and other body fluids can spread dangerous infectious diseases such as hepatitis A, Clostridium difficile, E. coli, rotavirus and norovirus.

The state health department has placed impacted product still on the farm under seizure and is working with the farm to oversee disposition and corrective action.

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Posted in Clostridium difficile, Contaminated water, Decontamination Microbial, E.coli, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, Hepatitis A, microbial contamination, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk, Norovirus, Water, water microbiology, Water Safety

USA – More than 200 backpackers and rafters sickened in Grand Canyon National Park backcountry- Suspected Norovirus

Posted on October 3, 2022 by | Leave a comment

Food Safety News

Between April 1 and June 17, 2022, at least 222 rafters and backpackers became infected with acute gastroenteritis, most likely norovirus, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This is the largest outbreak of acute gastroenteritis documented in the Grand Canyon National Park backcountry.

Preliminary analysis of illness characteristics and portable toilet specimen test results suggested norovirus as the primary causative agent of illness. Norovirus spreads quickly through person-to-person contact and contaminated food or beverages and can persist in the environment. The bacteria can live for days to weeks on hard surfaces.

River outfitters and National Park staff members partnered to enable the implementation of prevention and control measures.

Norovirus-associated acute gastroenteritis is highly transmissible in settings with close person-to-person contact and decreased access to hand hygiene. Because many trips use the same campsites and place-portable toilets in the same locations, particles could have been transmitted to surfaces, beach sand or river water where new groups could have encountered them, and then transmitted the virus both from person-to-person and trip-to-trip.

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

Research – Evaluation of the Impact of Compliance with Mitigation Strategies and Frequency of Restaurant Surface Cleaning and Sanitizing on Control of Norovirus Transmission from Ill Food Employees Using an Existing Quantitative Risk Assessment Model 

Posted on September 26, 2022 by | 1 comment

Journal of Food Protection

Norwalk_Caspid

ABSTRACT

Reduction of foodborne illness caused by norovirus (NoV) continues to be a focus for the food safety community. Using a previously published quantitative risk assessment model, we evaluated more than 60 scenarios examining the impact of implementation of and compliance with risk management strategies identified in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Food Code for (a) surface cleaning and sanitizing, (b) hand hygiene, (c) exclusion, or (d) restriction of ill employees. Implementation of and compliance with hand hygiene and ill food employee exclusion strategies had the largest impact on the predicted number of highly contaminated food servings and associated consumer illnesses. In scenarios in which gloves were always worn and hand washing compliance was 90%, the model estimated reductions in the number of highly contaminated food servings and ill consumers to 39 and 43% of baseline estimates (i.e., typical practice), respectively. Reductions were smaller when gloves were never worn. Hand washing compliance after using the restroom strongly impacted predicted numbers of highly contaminated servings and consumer illnesses. Ten percent compliance with removing or excluding ill food employees was predicted to increase the number of highly contaminated food servings and ill consumers to 221 and 213% of baseline estimates, respectively. Ninety-four percent compliance with exclusion of ill food employees was predicted to decrease these numbers to 69 and 71% of baseline estimates, respectively. Surface cleaning in food establishments had a relatively small impact on these measures. Restriction of food employees (removed from contact with food and food contact equipment and utensils) was not effective for reducing NoV illness unless this restriction included additional provisions. The results from this study can help risk managers prioritize mitigation strategies and their implementation for controlling the transmission of NoV and subsequent consumer foodborne illness.

HIGHLIGHTS
  • We adapted a discrete event NoV transmission model for use in a food establishment.
  • Compliance with exclusion and hand hygiene rules had the most impact on consumer illnesses.
  • Washing hands before donning and changing gloves efficiently reduces NoV transfer.
  • Restriction of food employees needs additional provisions to be effective.
  • Surface cleaning and sanitizing has the least impact on consumer illnesses.

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Posted in Decontamination Microbial, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Safety Management, food safety training, microbial contamination, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk, Norovirus, NoV

RASFF Alert – Norovirus – Oysters –

Posted on September 23, 2022 by | Leave a comment

RASFF

Norovirus (GI /2g) in live oysters (Crassostrea gigas) from France, via Netherlands in Finland

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Posted in food contamination, food handler, Food Hazard, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Pathogen, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Safety Management, Food Testing, Food Virus, Norovirus, Norovirus Oysters, RASFF, Virus

What Are Common Food Poisoning Pathogen Incubation Periods?

Posted on September 21, 2022 by | Leave a comment

Food Safety Gov

Check out the fact sheets at the link above.

Bacteria and Viruses

Bacteria and viruses are the most common cause of food poisoning. The symptoms and severity of food poisoning vary, depending on which bacteria or virus has contaminated the food.

To prevent illness, always follow the food safety steps: clean, separate, cook, and chill. Other prevention tips for specific bacteria and viruses are included below.

The bacteria and viruses that cause the most illnesses, hospitalizations, or deaths in the United States are described below and include:

Other important bacteria and viruses that cause foodborne illness include:

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Posted in Bacillus, Bacillus cereus, Bacteria, bacterial contamination, Bacterial Spores, Campylobacter, Clostridium, Clostridium botulinum, Decontamination Microbial, E.coli, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Hepatitis A, Listeria, Listeria monocytogenes, microbial contamination, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk, Norovirus, Salmonella, Shigella, Staphylococcus aureus, Vibrio

Research – Risk Assessment of Norovirus Transmission in Food Establishments

Posted on September 21, 2022 by | Leave a comment

FDA

The Risk Assessment of Norovirus Transmission in Food Establishments: Evaluating the Impact of Intervention Strategies and Food Employee Behavior (Duret et al. 2017) evaluates the dynamics of norovirus transmission from ill or infected food employees in food establishments (restaurant setting) to ready-to-eat food and consumers during food preparation and also evaluates the impact of prevention strategies. A discrete event model was developed to study norovirus transmission from the soiled hands of ill or infected food employees and the impact of prevention strategies and their compliance on the prevalence of contaminated servings and the number of resulting infected customers.

The Evaluation of the Impact of Compliance with Mitigation Strategies and Frequency of Restaurant Surface Cleaning and Sanitizing on Control of Norovirus Transmission from Ill Food Employees Using an Existing Quantitative Risk Assessment Model (Fanaselle et al. 2022) uses the previously published FDA quantitative risk assessment model in Duret et al. 2017, to evaluate more than 60 scenarios examining the impact of implementation and compliance with recommendations in the FDA Food Code for: restaurant surface cleaning and sanitizing, hand hygiene and employee health.

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

Research – Interactions Between Infectious Foodborne Viruses and Bacterial Biofilms Formed on Different Food Contact Surfaces

Posted on September 19, 2022 by | Leave a comment

Springer

Bacterial biofilms contribute to contamination, spoilage, persistence, and hygiene failure in the food industry, but relatively little is known about the behavior of foodborne viruses evolving in the complex communities that make up biofilm. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between enteric viruses and biofilms on food contact surfaces. Formed biofilms of mono- and multispecies cultures were prepared on glass, stainless steel, and polystyrene coupons and 105 pfu/ml of murine norovirus, rotavirus, and hepatitis A virus were added and incubated for 15 min, 90 min, and 24 h. The data obtained clearly demonstrate that the presence of biofilms generally influences the adhesion of enteric viruses to different surfaces. Many significant increases in attachment rates were observed, particularly with rotavirus whose rate of viral infectious particles increased 7000 times in the presence of Pseudomonas fluorescens on polystyrene after 24 h of incubation and with hepatitis A virus, which seems to have an affinity for the biofilms formed by lactic acid bacteria. Murine norovirus seems to be the least influenced by the presence of biofilms with few significant increases. However, the different factors surrounding this association are unknown and seem to vary according to the viruses, the environmental conditions, and the composition of the biofilm.

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Posted in Biofilm, Decontamination Microbial, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Virus, microbial contamination, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk, Norovirus, Pseudomonas fluorescens, Research