E. & F. Inc., a St. Louis establishment, is recalling approximately 123
pounds of frozen, ready-to-eat meatballs due to possible contamination with
Listeria monocytogenes, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food
Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today.
Posted in Bacteria, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, FSIS, Laboratory, Listeria, Listeria monocytogenes, Microbiology, Pathogen, Recall
Tagged food safety and inspection service, Listeria monocytogenes, U.S. Department of Agriculture, USDA E. & F. Inc.
Bacillus cereus is capable of producing enterotoxin and emetic toxin, and Bacillus foodborne illnesses occur due to the consumption of food contaminated with endospores. The objectives of this study were to investigate the growth and toxin production of B. cereus in cooked rice and to determine the effect of temperature on toxin destruction. Cooked rice inoculated with B. cereus was stored at 15, 25, 35, and 45°C or treated at 80, 90, and 100°C. The results indicated that emetic toxin was produced faster than enterotoxin (which was not detected below 15°C) at all the storage temperatures (15–45°C) during the first 72 h. Emetic toxin persisted at 100°C for 2 h, although enterotoxin was easily to be destroyed by this treatment within 15 min. In addition, B. cereus in cooked rice stored at a warm temperature for a period was not inactivated due to survival of the thermostable endospores. These data indicate that the contaminated cooked rice with B. cereus might present a potential risk to consumers. Results from this study may help enhance the safety of such food, and provide valuable and reliable information for risk assessment and management, associated with the problem of B. cereus in cooked rice.
Molecular typing methods are laboratory techniques, such as whole genome sequencing, that enable the classification and comparison of strains of disease-causing bacteria. EFSA’s Panel on Biological Hazards (BIOHAZ) has reviewed the methods for typing the food-borne pathogens Salmonella, Escherichia coli, Listeria and Campylobacter, and has evaluated the effectiveness of these methods for:
RASFF -norovirus in frozen raspberries from Poland, via Belgium in Finland
RASFF -Salmonella spp. (presence /25g) in frozen clams from Vietnam in Portugal
RASFF -Salmonella spp. in frozen clams (Meretrix spp.) from Vietnam in Portugal
RASFF -Salmonella spp. (presence /25g) in frozen clams (Meretrix spp.) from Vietnam in Portugal
RASFF -Salmonella infantis and Salmonella Mbandaka in chilled boneless chicken thighs from Poland in Italy
RASFF -Salmonella spp. in paan leaves from Bangladesh in the UK
RASFF -Salmonella spp. (presence /25g) in frozen basted chicken breast from Poland
RASFF -Salmonella Newport (present /25g) in frozen turkey meat from Poland in Denmark
RASFF -Salmonella enterica in frozen turkey meat preparation from Brazil in the Netherlands
RASFF -Salmonella infantis (in 5 out of 12 /25g) in chilled chicken breasts from Italy in Denmark
RASFF -Salmonella spp. (presence /25g) in frozen poultry meat preparations from Brazil in the Netherlands
RASFF -Salmonella szentes (present /25g) in rucola from Spain in Sweden
RASFF -Salmonella Heidelberg (presence /25g) in frozen salted chicken breast fillets (Gallus gallus) from Brazil in the Netherlands
RASFF -Salmonella (presence /25g) in paan leaves from Bangladesh in the UK
RASFF -Salmonella (present/25g) in paan leaves from India in the UK
RASFF -Salmonella spp. (presence /25g) in paan leaves from Bangladesh in the UK
RASFF -Salmonella anatum (in 1 out of 4 samples /25g) in processed animal proteins (chicken) from the Netherlands in Sweden
RASFF -Salmonella Mbandaka (presence /25g) in soy expller from Brazil, via the Netherlands in Belgium
RASFF -Salmonella Senftenberg (presence /25g) in muesli for calves from Germany in Finland
RASFF -Salmonella Agona (present /25g) in non GMO soybean meal from Italy in Austria
RASFF -Salmonella Mbandaka (in 1 out of 99 samples /25g) in GMO soybean meal from Germany, via Switzerland in Finland
RASSF – aflatoxins (B1 = 75.2 / B1 = 12.7 / B1 = 20.1 µg/kg – ppb) in maize from Hungary in Germany
Sprouts have gained popularity worldwide due to their nutritional values and health benefits. The fact that their consumption has been associated with numerous outbreaks of foodborne illness threatens the $250 million market that this industry has established in the United States. Therefore, sprout manufacturers have utilized the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recommended application of 20,000 ppm of calcium hypochlorite solution to seeds before germination as a preventative method. Concentrations of up to 200 ppm of chlorine wash are also commonly used on sprouts. However, chlorine-based treatment achieves on average only 1- to 3-log reductions in bacteria and is associated with negative health and environmental issues. The search for alternative strategies has been widespread, involving chemical, biological, physical, and hurdle processes that can achieve up to 7-log reductions in bacteria in some cases. The compilation here of the current scientific data related to these techniques is used to compare their efficacy for ensuring the microbial safety of sprouts and their practicality for commercial producers. Of specific importance for alternative seed and sprout treatments is maintaining the industry-accepted germination rate of 95% and the sensorial attributes of the final product. This review provides an evaluation of suggested decontamination technologies for seeds and sprouts before, during, and after germination and concludes that thermal inactivation of seeds and irradiation of sprouts are the most practical stand-alone microbial safety interventions for sprout production.
FoodWorld 