Category Archives: outbreak

South Africa – Listeriosis flare-up now seen as worst documented outbreak in global history

Posted on January 8, 2018 by | Leave a comment

Times Live

In the past month‚ another 167 people have contracted deadly listeriosis‚ bringing the total number of confirmed cases in South Africa to 717.

Food scientists are now calling it the worst documented listeriosis outbreak in global history.

In its latest listeriosis update‚ dated January 3‚ the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) – which has been tracking the listeriosis outbreak for an entire year – said 61 deaths had been reported.

Listeriosis has a relatively high mortality rate – 20-25% compared to illnesses caused by most other food-borne pathogens. Less than 1% of people who get Salmonella or E. coli O157 die as a result.

Neonates – babies less than 28 days old – remain the most affected by listeriosis.

Foods that have caused outbreaks are typically contaminated from the environment during manufacturing‚ processing or packing.

Foods most often implicated in food-borne outbreaks globally‚ are deli meats (polonies‚ ham products‚ etc) and hot dogs; refrigerated pâtés or meat spreads; unpasteurised (raw) milk and dairy products; soft cheese made with unpasteurised milk‚ such as feta‚ brie and camembert‚ refrigerated smoked seafood‚ raw sprouts and pre-packaged salads.

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Posted in Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Listeria monocytogenes, outbreak, Uncategorized

UK -Four more E.coli O157 Cases in Scotland Linked to Burgers

Posted on February 7, 2014 by | Leave a comment

STV NewsBurger

Four more cases of E coli have been linked to the SSE Hydro in Glasgow, health bosses said.

The new cases bring the total number to 15 and are all linked to events at the venue on January 17, 18 and 19.

An investigation by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHSGGC) alongside other public health bodies has indicated that burgers sold at the Hydro could have been the cause of the outbreak.

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Posted in Bacteria, E.coli, E.coli O157, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, HUS, Laboratory, Microbiology, outbreak, Pathogen, Uncategorized

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USA – Another Cruise Ship Norovirus Outbreak

Posted on January 28, 2014 by | Leave a comment

Food Poisoning JournalNorwalk_Caspid

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.’s ship Explorer of the Seas is returning two days early to its New Jersey port after a stomach illness struck more than 600 people out of about 4,200 onboard, NBC News reported late Sunday. The 564 passengers and 47 crew members on the 10-day cruise to the U.S. Virgin Islands reported symptoms suggesting a possible norovirus outbreak, the report said, citing an official with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The incident follows the outbreak of a gastrointestinal illness aboard another ship earlier this month.

Food Poisoning Journal

NBC News reports that U.S. health officials are expected to board a Royal Caribbean cruise ship in the Virgin Islands on Sunday to investigate a possible outbreak of highly contagious norovirus that has sickened more than 300 passengers and crew members.

The Explorer of the Seas ship stopped part way through a 10-day cruise from Cape Liberty, N.J., to the Caribbean island of St. Maarten after reports of vomiting and diarrhea, according to the cruise line and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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Posted in Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Testing, Food Virus, Methods, Norovirus, outbreak, Pathogen, Virus

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Japan- Norovirus Outbreak in Bread – 1000 Cases

Posted on January 21, 2014 by | Leave a comment

Japanese TimesEurofins

Bread maker Hofuku, which has admitted one of its products is probably responsible for causing more than 1,000 children in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, to suffer food poisoning, has started recalling its products from retailers, including supermarkets in Yamanashi, Shizuoka, Aichi and Okayama prefectures.

According to the Hamamatsu Municipal Government, the bread the local company produced Monday and delivered to schools Tuesday morning is likely to have been tainted with the norovirus.

Japanese News

Three female workers at a Higashi Ward, Hamamatsu, bakery were identified as carriers of norovirus.

The bakery is suspected to have been the cause of a mass food poisoning that affected many primary schools in the city, according to the Hamamatsu city government.

The city government announced Sunday that workers at Hofuku, a company that produced bread deemed to be the cause of the norovirus outbreak, were found to be infected with the virus.

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Posted in Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Food Virus, Foodborne Illness, Microbiology, Norovirus, outbreak, Pathogen, Virus

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USA – Food Sickness Outbreak in December was Norovirus – 282 People

Posted on January 20, 2014 by | Leave a comment

Food Poisoning BulletinNorwalk_Caspid

Norovirus was the cause of a December food poisoning outbreak that sickened 282 people who ate at a Jimmy John’s restaurant in Garden City, Kansas, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) has confirmed.  State and county officials worked together to determine the source of the outbreak which sickened customers who visited the restaurant from December 10 to December 24.

The restaurant was inspected by the Kansas Department of Agriculture on December 18 and again on December 24. It closed voluntarily from December 24 through December 26 to clean and disinfect the restaurant

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Posted in Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Food Virus, Foodborne Illness, Illness, Laboratory, Microbiology, Norovirus, outbreak, Pathogen, Research

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USA – Two Shigella Outbreaks – Texas and Cleveland

Posted on January 20, 2014 by | Leave a comment

Shigella Blog220px-Shigella_stool

Public Health officials are seeing a rise in Shigellosis cases in the Cleveland area, especially among children. As a result, the Cleveland Department of Public Health is encouraging parents, schools, daycare centers, and health care providers to take precautionary actions to prevent the spread of Shigellosis.

Shigellosis is a highly contagious form of diarrhea caused by Shigella bacteria. Shigella spreads from person to person contact and may cause severe diarrhea, fever and stomach cramps. Parents of children, or anyone with symptoms of Shigellosis should contact their healthcare provider for diagnosis and treatment.

Symptoms may last from 48 to 72 hours and frequently include diarrhea (may be watery or bloody), fever, and stomach cramps. School aged children and children in daycare centers should not return to school until symptoms have ceased and laboratory cultures test negative for Shigella.

Shigella Blog

Four more cases of Shigella have been reported in Grayson County bringing the total countywide cases to 98.

Shigella began spreading in November mainly at Sherman and Denison ISD.

Officials with the Grayson County Health Department hoped that school winter breaks would halt the spread of the bacterial infection.

Amanda Ortez with the department says she believes children with shigella, home for the holidays, have been infecting their family members.

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Posted in Bacteria, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Hygiene, Microbiology, outbreak, Pathogen, Recall, Shigella

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Australia – Salmonella Outbreak Closes Restaurant in Melbourne

Posted on January 8, 2014 by | Leave a comment

Courier MailSalm

MORE than a dozen people have fallen ill after eating from a Melbourne restaurant that has been shut down after a salmonella scare.

The Hao Phong restaurant in Footscray was closed by health authorities on Tuesday after two diners were taken to hospital for salmonella poisoning, a Victorian health department spokesman said.

The Maribyrnong City Council confirmed a number of people had fallen ill after eating at the restaurant between December 27 and 31.

There are up to 13 suspected cases involving people who ate at the restaurant, the council confirmed.

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Posted in Bacteria, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Illness, Microbiology, outbreak, Pathogen, Salmonella

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Japan – Norovirus Outbreak 118 at a Hotel

Posted on January 2, 2014 by | Leave a comment

Japan Todaynorovirus-2(1)

TOKYO —

Tochigi prefectural health officials announced Monday that 118 guests suffered food poisoning at a hotel in Nikko City earlier this month and that traces of food-borne Norovirus strains had been detected.

According to authorities, the Kinugawa Gyoen Hotel received complaints of gastrointestinal distress from male and female guests ranging in age from two to 80 between Dec 18 and Dec 22. TBS quoted a hotel spokesperson as saying symptoms included vomiting and diarrhea. Among the 118, eight guests and 11 chefs and kitchen staff were discovered to have the Norovirus strain in their systems.

Health officials said no one had to be hospitalized.

According to a hotel spokesperson, the 118 afflicted guests had eaten inside the hotel restaurant, dining on a variety of menu items, ranging from sashimi dishes to hot Japanese-style curries.

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Posted in Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Food Virus, Foodborne Illness, Laboratory, Microbiology, Norovirus, outbreak, Pathogen, Poisoning

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Research – New Norovirus Strain

Posted on January 2, 2014 by | Leave a comment

Food Poisoning BulletinEurofins

Last year at this time we told you about a new strain of norovirus, called GII.4 Sydney that the CDC was tracking. Last week, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services issued a warning about an outbreak in that state.

The CDC has been studying this new strain. They now have information and statistics on the strain, and have analyzed data from outbreaks in five states.

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Posted in CDC, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Food Virus, Foodborne Illness, Illness, Microbiology, Norovirus, outbreak, Pathogen, Research

USA – Foster Farms Sickens 416 to Date

Posted on December 20, 2013 by | Leave a comment

Food Poisoning BulletinSalmonella

Salmonella on Foster Farms chicken has sickened at least 416 people in 23 states, according to the latest update from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The outbreak strains of Salmonella Heidelberg are resistant to several commonly prescribed antibiotics which may be a factor in the 40 percent  hospitalization rate for this outbreak, which is about twice the average.

The company has not issued a recall for the chicken and despite its plans to improve in October conditions at three plants associated with the outbreak, reports of illness continued through the end of November and perhaps beyond, according to the CDC.

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Posted in Bacteria, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Hygiene, Illness, Microbiology, outbreak, Pathogen, Salmonella

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