Category Archives: Pathogen

USA – Fruit Juice Recall Patulin – Mould

Posted on April 15, 2013 by | Leave a comment

Food Poisoning Bulletin

Wegmans is recalling two types of its store brand fruit juices because they contain an unacceptable level of patulin, which is a by-product of mold. Patulin is a mycotoxin produced by molds such as Penicillium, Aspergillus, and Byssochylamys. An ingredient used to make the juices is the problem. Patulin is not Penicillin and it is not a mold. It’s not likely that exposure to patin at the low levels found in the juice would cause any symptoms, but you should not consume it because in laboratory animals it can cause DNA damage and damage the immune and nervous systems.

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Posted in Food Chemistry, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Spoilage, Food Testing, Microbiology, Moulds, Pathogen, Patulin, Recall

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USA – Extended Recall of Meats – Listeria monocytogenes

Posted on April 15, 2013 by | Leave a comment

Food Poisoning Journallisteria-hp

Manda Packing Company, a Baker, La., establishment, is expanding its recall to include approximately 468,000 pounds of roast beef, ham, turkey breast, tasso pork, ham shanks, hog head cheese, corned beef, and pastrami due to possible contamination with Listeria monocytogenes, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today.

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Posted in Bacteria, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Listeria, Listeria monocytogenes, Microbiology, Pathogen, Recall

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Malta – Salmonella Outbreak Petting Farm

Posted on April 15, 2013 by | Leave a comment

HACCP Europa

MALTA – Salmonella has been detected in peacocks and turkeys section in the popular “Petting Farm” in Ta’ Qali. The salmonella was picked up through regular tests on the animals.

“Petting Farm” is situated on the southern part of the Ta’ Qali National Park. It covers a footprint of circa 11,600m2. It is newly opened recreation facilities which offer a great interaction experience with farm animals for children in a beautifully landscaped and relaxing environment.

The area has been quarantined and cordoned off immediately as soon as the animals tested positive for salmonella enteritidis.

This particular strain of the salmonella bacterium affects and infects poultry – especially chicken flocks, without causing visible disease, spreading rapidly. When passed on to humans, usually through consumption of uncooked meat or eggs and contaminated food, it causes symptoms such as abdominal cramps, diarrhoea, nausea, vomiting and fever.

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Posted in Bacteria, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Microbiology, Pathogen, Pet Food, Recall

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Canada – Extended Recall – Smoked Fish – Seafood- Clostridium botulinum –

Posted on April 15, 2013 by | Leave a comment

CFIACIFA

The public warning issued earlier today has been expanded to include additional products and codes.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is warning the public not to consume the smoked fish products described below because they may be contaminated with Clostridium botulinum.  Toxins produced by these bacteria may cause botulism, a life-threatening illness.

There have been no reported illnesses associated with the consumption of these products.

The manufacturer, Hooked Inc., Toronto, ON, is voluntarily recalling the affected products from the marketplace. The CFIA is monitoring the effectiveness of the recall.

CFIA

The public warning issued on April 6, 2013 has been updated to include additional products because they may be contaminated with Clostridium botulinum. Previously identified products included in this recall can be found on the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) website.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is warning the public not to consume the St. Thomas brand bottled seafood products described below because they may be contaminated with Clostridium botulinum. Toxins produced by these bacteria may cause botulism, a life-threatening illness.

There have been no reported illnesses associated with the consumption of these products.

These products have been distributed in New Brunswick and may have been distributed in other provinces.

The CFIA is monitoring the effectiveness of the recall.

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Posted in Bacteria, CFIA, Clostridium botulinum, Food Hygiene, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Microbiology, Pathogen, Recall

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Canada – Recall – Clostridium botulinum – Smoked Fish

Posted on April 13, 2013 by | Leave a comment

CFIAClost

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is warning the public not to consume the smoked fish products described in the link above because they may be contaminated with Clostridium botulinum.  Toxins produced by these bacteria may cause botulism, a life-threatening illness.

There have been no reported illnesses associated with the consumption of these products.

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Posted in Bacteria, Clostridium botulinum, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Microbiology, Pathogen, Recall

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Sweden – Food Borne Illness – Hepatitis A Virus – Berries

Posted on April 13, 2013 by | Leave a comment

The Local

The Swedish Institute for Communicable Disease Control (Smittskyddsinstitutet, SMI) warned that the berries may have been responsible for 22 cases of Hepatitis A in Sweden so far.

The usual contagion rate for the same timeframe is about five people in Sweden.

Experts from the institute advised berry lovers to take caution when consuming any  berries bought in Sweden that were sold frozen.

“If you cook them for at least one minute then all the contagion will die or disappear,” Margareta Löfdahl, epidemiologist from the Institute, told the TT news agency.

“This cooking advice applies to all kinds of frozen berried from all suppliers, this is the safest option until we find out more.”

The people infected in Sweden were infected with the same type of Hepatitis that 30 people in Denmark were diagnosed with recently, which has since been traced to frozen berries and strawberries in particular.

The SMI is now sending traces of the berries to the Swedish National Food Agency (Livsmedelsverket) for testing.

Hepatitis A is an infection of the liver. It can be prevented by vaccination, and experts at SMI have recommended Swedes remember to maintain good hygiene.

 

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Posted in Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Food Virus, Foodborne Illness, Hepatitis A, Hygiene, Illness, Microbiology, outbreak, Pathogen, Toxin, Virus

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Central America – 4 Dead E.coli Outbreak

Posted on April 12, 2013 by | Leave a comment

Food Safety NewsEcoli Istock

At least 96 people have been hospitalized and 4 have died in an E. coli outbreak in Guatemala linked to fresh produce.

The outbreak, which has affected residents of the town of Santo Domingo Xenacoj in South Central Guatemala, is thought to have originated with contaminated fruits and vegetables, reported the Associated Press Thursday.

A male resident of the town reported that two of his children, ages 9 and 12, had died in the outbreak, according to AP.

Specimen taken from the four victims who died linked their deaths to E. coli, said health officials.

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Posted in Bacteria, E.coli, EHEC, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Hygiene, Illness, Methods, Microbiology, outbreak, Pathogen, STEC, VTECH

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EFSA – VTEC E.coli Strains

Posted on April 11, 2013 by | Leave a comment

EFSAefsa

EFSA’s scientific experts say that it is currently not possible to identify which VTEC bacteria strains have the potential to cause human diseases. In order to help risk managers to identify human health risks, EFSA has proposed a scheme to categorise VTEC strains according to their potential to cause disease. This work has been carried out in response to a request of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Health.

VTEC (verocytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli) is a group of pathogenic E. coli bacteria that can cause bloody diarrhoea and haemolytic uremic syndrome in humans, a serious condition that can lead to kidney failure and be fatal [1].

EFSA’s Panel on Biological Hazards (BIOHAZ) has evaluated data from the EU on different VTEC strains with respect to their reported frequency, severity of human disease caused by the strains, and association with outbreaks. The Panel concluded that it is currently not possible to fully predict the potential of a VTEC strain found in food to cause human disease.

However the Panel has provided guidance to assist public health authorities in assessing risks related to VTEC strains. They proposed a scheme that considers the detection of specific genes in VTEC strains from humans, food and animals. EFSA will regularly review this scheme to improve future risk assessments.

Due to under-reporting of human cases and the unavailability of complete information, EFSA’s scientific experts also recommended that all Member States collect comprehensive data on VTEC strains when these are detected. Accurate reporting will help in predicting the factors responsible for the severity of human infections and outbreaks.

To carry out this evaluation, the Panel used data from the European Surveillance System (TESSy data) provided by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control and from the EU Summary Report on Trends and Sources of Zoonoses, Zoonotic Agents and Food-borne Outbreaks in 2011published today as well as data from relevant scientific literature.

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Posted in Bacteria, E.coli, E.coli O103, E.coli O104, E.coli O121, E.coli O145, E.coli O157, E.coli O26, EFSA, EHEC, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Technology, Food Testing, Microbiology, O103, Pathogen, Research, STEC, VTECH

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Research – Biofilms and Salmonella

Posted on April 11, 2013 by | Leave a comment

Science DailySalmonella

Virginia Tech scientists have provided new evidence that biofilms — bacteria that adhere to surfaces and build protective coatings — are at work in the survival of the human pathogen Salmonella.

Researchers affiliated with the Fralin Life Science Institute discovered that in addition to protecting Salmonella from heat-processing and sanitizers such as bleach, biofilms preserve the bacteria in extremely dry conditions, and again when the bacteria are subjected to normal digestive processes. The study is now online in the International Journal of Food Microbiology and will appear in the April issue.

 

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Posted in Bacteria, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Safety, Food Technology, Food Testing, Microbiology, Pathogen, Research, Salmonella

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USA – Cooked Deli Beef – Listeria monocytogenes

Posted on April 11, 2013 by | Leave a comment

Food Poisoning Bulletinlisteria-hp

Manda Packing Company, a Baker, La., establishment, is recalling approximately 20,166 pounds of cooked roast beef deli meat due to possible contamination with Listeria monocytogenes, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today.

Various weights of the following products are subject to recall:

  • Manda Supreme Roast Beef
  • Four Star Cajun Roast Beef
  • Four Star Roast Beef
  • Cajun Prize Roast Beef
  • Manda Supreme Natural Roast Beef
  • Manda Natural Roast Beef
  • Manda New Orleans Style Roast Beef
  • Manda Whole Wet Pack Roast Beef

Each package has a “Sell by” date of May 13, 2013, and bears the establishment number “EST. 8746A” inside the USDA mark of inspection. These products may have been sliced at retail delis, and if so will not bear this packaging information. The products were packed on February 27, 2013, and shipped for further distribution and to retail deli stores in Louisiana, Texas, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Illinois, and Tennessee.

FSIS was alerted to the problem by the Tennessee Department of Health, who took an intact sample of cooked roast beef at a retail establishment on April 5, 2013, which later confirmed positive for Listeria monocytogenes. FSIS and the company have received no reports of illnesses associated with consumption of these products.

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Posted in Bacteria, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, FSIS, Listeria, Listeria monocytogenes, Microbiology, Pathogen, Recall

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