AN upscale Long Beach restaurant temporarily shut down last month after several patrons and employees fell ill in a norovirus outbreak, authorities said Monday.
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The Hemisphere Group, Inc. of Smithtown, NY, is recalling 14,000 lbs. of Vietnamese LP Cashews, because they have the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Healthy persons infected with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. In rare circumstances, infection with Salmonella can result in the organism getting into the bloodstream and producing more severe illnesses such as arterial infections (i.e., infected aneurysms), endocarditis and arthritis.
The Vietnamese Cashews were distributed to direct customers in Kalamazoo, Michigan; North Billerica, Massachusetts; Maspeth, New York; plus Quebec and Scarborough, Canada. The direct customers were instructed to notify their accounts if the cashews had been distributed and to return them to The Hemisphere Group.
The following product is being recalled:
Product: Vietnamese LP Cashew Kernels (shelled)
Product: Vietnamese LP Cashew Kernels (shelled)
Net Weight: 50 lbs. bulk cartons
Packer: Hong Duc Company Limited
FDA No.: 16153193186 (on carton)
Hemisphere Code No. P95497
The firm has not received any reports of illnesses to date.
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Jose Madrid Salsa of Zanesville, OH, has recalled its mild salsa because the jars are not properly sealed and therefore present a health risk. Improperly sealed jars can lead to product spoilage or contamination by the bacteria that cause botulism.
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CIDRAP -Consumer education needed on Norovirus prevention and control
CIDRAP-Norovirus genotype profiles associated with foodborne transmission, 1999-2012
CIDRAP-Gastroenteritis outbreaks caused by norovirus GII.17, Guangdong Province, China, 2014-2015
CIDRAP-Detection and quantification of airborne norovirus during outbreaks in healthcare facilities
CIDRAP – Norovirus outbreak associated with a natural lake used for recreation — Oregon, 2014
CIDRAP – Genome of emerging norovirus GII.17, United States, 2014
CIDRAP -Norovirus Information Page
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The Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority has recalled French cheese of the brand Le Petit Fiance des Pyrenees. The salmonella bacteria was found in some of these cheeses.
The NVWA urgently warns people who have bought this brand of cheese with the expiration date 02-06-2015 to not consume the cheese and report it to the store where it was purchased. If you have already eaten the cheese and are feeling sick, contact your doctor as soon as possible.
According to the NVWA, the chances of being contaminated are small, but the consequences could be severe. Symptoms include diarrhea, abdominal pain and fever. The symptoms usually occur within 12 to 36 hours after consumption and may persist for 2 or three days.
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Microwave-powered cold plasma treatment (CPT) was evaluated as a means to improve the microbiological safety of fresh vegetables and dried fruits. The CPT at 900 W, conducted for 10 min using nitrogen as a plasma-forming gas, inactivated Salmonella Typhimurium inoculated on cabbage and lettuce by approximately 1.5 log CFU/g. The CPT at 400–900 W and 667 Pa, conducted for 1–10 min using a helium–oxygen gas mixture, inactivated Listeria monocytogenes on cabbage by 0.3–2.1 log CFU/g in a time-dependent manner (P < 0.05). The Weibull model adequately described the inactivation of L. monocytogenes on cabbage by CPT. The CPT at the optimum conditions of treatment power (400 W) and time (10 min) inactivated L. monocytogenes on lettuce by 1.8 ± 0.2 log CFU/g. As the water activity of the dried figs increased from 0.70 to 0.93, the reductions in numbers of Escherichia coli O157:H7 and L. monocytogenes on figs increased from 0.5 to 1.3 log CFU/g and from 1.0 to 1.6 log CFU/g, respectively. The microbial inactivation by CPT increased synergistically when the pH of the figs was reduced from 6 to 4. CTPs have potential application to increase the microbiological safety of vegetables and dried fruits.
Surveillance and control of food-borne human pathogens, such as Listeria monocytogenes, is a critical aspect of modern food safety programs at food production facilities. This study evaluated contamination patterns of Listeria species at a poultry food production facility, and evaluated the efficacy of procedures to control the contamination and transfer of the bacteria throughout the plant. The presence of Listeria species was studied along the production chain, including raw ingredients, food-contact, non-food-contact surfaces, and finished product. All isolates were sub-typed by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) to identify possible entry points for Listeria species into the production chain, as well as identifying possible transfer routes through the facility. The efficacy of selected in-house sanitizers against a sub-set of the isolates was evaluated. Of the 77 different PFGE-types identified, 10 were found among two or more of the five categories/areas (ingredients, food preparation, cooking and packing, bulk packing, and product), indicating potential transfer routes at the facility. One of the six sanitizers used was identified as unsuitable for control of Listeria species. Combining PFGE data, together with information on isolate location and timeframe, facilitated identification of a persistent Listeria species contamination that had colonized the facility, along with others that were transient.
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Campylobacter in raw milk has sickened several Indian children under the age of 2, according to the Indiana Department of Health. The illnesses were reported in the Odon and Montgomery areas.
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Food Alert – Two batches of French cow’s milk cheese contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes
| Issue Date | 2015-05-29 | |
| Source of Information | Notification from the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed of the European Commission | |
| Food Product | Cow’s milk cheese | |
| Name of Importer | ||
| Product name and Description | (1) Product name: Saint Nectaire Fermier (raw cow’s milk cheese) Place of origin: France (2) Product name: Saint Nectaire Laitier (pasteurised cow’s milk cheese) |
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| Reason For Issuing Alert | – The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) received a notification from the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) of the European Commission that the above-mentioned batches of cow’s milk cheese were found to have been contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. According to the information provided by the RASFF, the French producer concerned has initiated a recall of the affected products and a small volume of the affected products has been imported into Hong Kong.
– Listeria monocytogenes can be easily destroyed by cooking but can survive and multiply at refrigerator temperature. Most healthy individuals do not develop symptoms or only have mild symptoms like fever, muscle pain, headache, nausea, vomiting or diarrhoea when infected. However, severe complications such as septicemia, meningitis or even death may occur in newborns, elderly and those with a weaker immune system. Although infected pregnant women may just experience mild symptoms generally, the infection of Listeria monocytogenes may cause miscarriage, infant death, preterm birth, or severe infection in the newborns. |
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| Action Taken by the Centre for Food Safety | – The CFS has immediately contacted City Super Limited and The House of Fine Foods Limited, the importers concerned in Hong Kong as notified by the RASFF. Information provided by the importers showed that they had only imported Saint Nectaire Fermier (raw cow’s milk cheese) but not Saint Nectaire Laitier (pasteurised cow’s milk cheese). According to the information provided by The House of Fine Foods Limited, all affected product has been disposed of and has not entered the local market. Information provided by City Super Limited showed that the affected product was being disposed and had not entered the local market.
– For the sake of prudence, the CFS will also alert the trade of the incident and urge them to stop using or selling the affected batch of products immediately should they have imported and still possess the products. – The CFS will continue to follow up and take appropriate actions. |
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| Advice to the Trade | Stop using or selling the products concerned immediately. | |
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EFSA – The present document has been produced and adopted by the bodies identified above as author(s). In accordance with Article 36 of Regulation (EC) No 178/2002, this task has been carried out exclusively by the author(s) in the context of a grant agreement between the European Food Safety Authority and the author(s). The present document is published complying with the transparency principle to which the Authority is subject. It cannot be considered as an output adopted by the Authority. The European Food Safety Authority reserves its rights, view and position as regards the issues addressed and the conclusions reached in the present document, without prejudice to the rights of the authors.
EFSA-The present document has been produced and adopted by the bodies identified above as author(s). This task has been carried out exclusively by the author(s) in the context of a contract between the European Food Safety Authority and the author(s), awarded following a tender procedure. The present document is published complying with the transparency principle to which the Authority is subject. It may not be considered as an output adopted by the Authority. The European food Safety Authority reserves its rights, view and position as regards the issues addressed and the conclusions reached in the present document, without prejudice to the rights of the authors.
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