More people have fallen sick in one of the Netherlands’ largest Salmonella outbreaks ever recorded.
As of mid-September, 171 laboratory-confirmed patients have been identified, including 151 in 2023 and 20 in 2024. Of these, 85 are male and 86 are female.
The National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) said that because not all infections are diagnosed or reported, the number of sick people is estimated to be 20 times higher.
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October 11, 2024: Final Notice
This notice has been updated to reflect that the outbreak appears to be over and the outbreak investigation has been closed.
Do not consume, use, sell, serve or distribute various recalled plant-based refrigerated beverages.
| Illnesses | 20 |
|---|---|
| Provinces and territories with illnesses (number of illnesses) |
|
| Hospitalizations | 15 |
| Deaths | 3 |
| Gender | 65% female |
| Age range | 7-89
70% of cases are 50 years of age or older |
| Food Recall | Yes, various Silk and Great Value brand plant-based refrigerated beverages recalled nationally |
| Investigation status | Closed |
In total, 20 laboratory-confirmed cases of Listeria monocytogenes illness were linked to this outbreak in:
Investigation findings identified plant-based refrigerated beverages from Silk and Great Value as the likely source of the outbreak.
On July 8, 2024, a food recall warning was issued for various Silk and Great Value brand plant-based refrigerated beverages, with October 4, 2024 as the latest best before date. For more information on the recalled products, please consult the Canadian Food inspection Agency (CFIA) recall notice on the Government of Canada Recalls and Safety Alerts website.
People became sick between August 2023 and mid-July 2024. Of the cases reported to us, 15 people have been hospitalized and three individuals have died. Many people who became sick reported drinking recalled plant-based beverages before their illnesses occurred.
The outbreak appears to be over and the investigation has been closed.
The food safety investigation included product and environmental sampling by the companies and the CFIA. The presence of the L. monocytogenes outbreak strain was confirmed within the production environment, however the primary site of the contamination within the environment was not able to be identified.
As a result, all production at the facility remains stopped, the manufacturing lines are being disassembled and the facility is being renovated. Production at the facility will not restart until the necessary corrective measures are implemented, including enhanced safety and production protocols, and the CFIA is satisfied that any contamination has been eliminated.
The St. Clair County Health Department (SCCHD) and Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) continue to investigate the outbreak of Shigellosis caused by Shigella bacteria, a disease that affects your digestive system. As of October 11, 2024, the SCCHD has identified 24 individuals with positive Shigella lab reports and an additional 44 individuals reporting illness consistent with Shigellosis after dining at the LongHorn Steakhouse located at 6115 North Illinois Street, in Fairview Heights, Illinois between the dates of September 20th and September 30th, 2024. Age range of those affected are from age 12 to 80 years of age. A total of nine (9) people have been hospitalized.
LongHorn Steakhouse officials voluntarily closed the Fairview Heights establishment on October 2, 2024 and have fully cooperated with SCCHD and IDPH on the investigation to determine the source of the infections. SCCHD has performed environmental assessments of the restaurant and provided corrective actions and guidance in consultation with IDPH on safe food handling practices, proper handwashing protocols and professional environmental cleaning services to prevent further spread of disease.
Since the beginning of the year, several accumulations of disease cases with Salmonella Enteritidis have been identified where epidemiological investigations have pointed to the consumption of imported eggs. The eggs have been sold both to private individuals in shops that do not belong to the larger chains and to restaurants. Several of the disease cases have consumed soft-boiled eggs or unheated eggs in, for example, mayonnaise, béarnaise sauce, Skagen scrambled eggs and pasta carbonara. On several occasions, eggs from private individuals, from shops and from restaurants have been analysed, however, without salmonella being able to be detected.
To avoid becoming infected, raw eggs or foods with raw eggs from countries other than Sweden, Norway, Finland and Denmark should not be consumed. The risk of infection when consuming such eggs is avoided by heating the whole egg, including the yolk, or the food containing eggs (see the Swedish Food Agency’s recommendations under Read more).
Continued investigative work takes place in collaboration between regional infection control, municipalities, the Swedish Food Agency and the Public Health Agency.
The FDA and CDC are assisting state and local partners from the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture Trade and Consumer Protection and Wisconsin Department of Health Services in an investigation of Salmonella Enteritidis infections linked to eggs supplied by Milo’s Poultry Farms, LLC of Bonduel, Wisconsin (WI).
As of September 6, 2024, a total of 65 people infected with the outbreak strain of Salmonella have been reported from nine states. Illnesses started on dates ranging from May 23, 2024 to August 10, 2024. Of the 63 people with information available, 24 have been hospitalized and no deaths have been reported.
A recently published report has detailed the largest multi-provincial Salmonella outbreak in Canada in more than two decades, linking 515 confirmed cases to contaminated red onions imported from the United States.
The outbreak, which occurred between June and August 2020, affected residents across seven provinces, with 19 percent of those infected requiring hospitalization. The findings, outlined in a report from the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) and other health agencies, underscore the complexity of foodborne illness investigations and the challenges posed by fresh produce contamination.
A separate report from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2020, found that a sheep farm was likely a contributing factor in the contamination of the onions.
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Scientists have provided more detail on some of those sickened in a botulism outbreak in Saudi Arabia earlier this year.
The study covered the clinical and epidemiological characteristics of 19 people who were suspected and eight cases that met the case definition for botulism as part of the outbreak that affected a total of 75 people in Riyadh. Foodborne botulism has not been previously reported in Saudi Arabia.
All patients referred to Riyadh First Health Cluster Hospitals between April 22 to 25, with gastrointestinal symptoms, respiratory distress, or descending paralysis after consuming mayonnaise from the popular Hamburgini burger restaurant chain were admitted for assessment and care.
Since July 2024, the Statens Serum Institut has registered 23 cases of Salmonella Umbilo. The Statens Serum Institut, the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration and the Norwegian Food Institute DTU are investigating the disease outbreak. This is an ongoing international disease outbreak with cases in several European countries caused by Salmonella Umbilo ST2014, with arugula lettuce internationally suspected as the source of infection.
An investigation into related Salmonella infections in the United Kingdom has revealed multiple vehicles and pathways of infection.
Following an outbreak of Salmonella Typhimurium in Wales in 2021, which was associated with sheep meat and lamb liver being consumed raw, other genetically related cases were found across the UK. The first outbreak with 22 sick people was detected in Cardiff in July 2021 at an Eid al-Adha barbecue celebration. Isolates part of the same cluster were first detected in Wales in April 2018.
Overall, 170 cases were reported in the cluster from April 2018 to December 2022. From August 2021 to December 2022, 142 patients were identified in the UK. Eleven were part of an outbreak linked to raw drinking milk in England between September and December 2022.
Today, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California entered a consent decree of permanent injunction against Rizo Lopez Foods Inc. (“Rizo Lopez Foods”), a California-based food manufacturer, and the company’s co-owners, Edwin Rizo and Tomas Rizo. Among other requirements, the consent decree prohibits Rizo Lopez Foods from manufacturing and selling certain food products until the company complies with the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act), federal regulations and other requirements.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in collaboration with state and local partners, investigated a multi-year, multistate outbreak of Listeria monocytogenes (L. monocytogenes) infections linked to queso fresco and cotija cheeses manufactured by Rizo Lopez Foods of Modesto, California.
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