Category Archives: Uncategorized

India – Telangana: 34 students suffer food poisoning in Warangal

Posted on September 7, 2022 by | Leave a comment

Siasat

Hyderabad: 34 students, all women, in Warangal district of Telangana suffered from food poisoning on Tuesday.

21 of them have been admitted to CHC Wardhannapet, another 12 to MGM hospital. All the students are reportedly safe. One of the students found a lizard in the food, reported Newsmeter.

A girl undergoing treatment at the hospital said she noticed a dead lizard in the food and stopped eating. Though she informed the in-charge, he told her that it was not a lizard but a green chilli. Few minutes later, several students started vomiting and also complained of stomach ache and loose motions.

Education department officials have ordered an inquiry. They said strong action would be taken against those found responsible.

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Holiday :)

Posted on August 30, 2022 by | Leave a comment

Hi All

You will have noticed a lack of posts last week, I was on holiday. You will get a few more posts than usual today and some will obviously be back dated. I will post them anyway as the blog is a good information depository for the future. Please stay with me. 🙂

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UK – Royal Mail strikes could affect salmonella samples, NFU says

Posted on August 17, 2022 by | Leave a comment

Farming UK

The NFU has urged poultry producers to make sure salmonella samples arrive on time as Royal Mail strikes are set to commence later this month.

The Communication Workers Union (CWU) has called on its members who collect, sort and deliver parcels and mail to take strike action on 26 and 31 August and the 8 and 9 September 2022.

The Royal Mail has contingency plans in place but is warning of potential disruption to delivery services.

Additionally, some Post Office workers will be taking strike action on 26, 27 and 30 August which will mean some branches are likely to be closed on those dates.

The Post Office is advising people to check their local branch is open before visiting during industrial action.

The NFU said poultry producers must take appropriate contingency measures to ensure that time sensitive items such as salmonella samples reach their destination on time.

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Italy – CHEESE OSSOLANO DOP – STEC E.coli

Posted on August 11, 2022 by | Leave a comment

Salute

Brand : OSSOLANO DOP

Name : CHEESE OSSOLANO DOP

Reason for reporting : Recall due to microbiological risk

Publication date : 10 August 2022

Documentation

Documentation

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Posted in food contamination, food handler, Food Hazard, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Pathogen, Food Poisoning, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Safety Management, Food Testing, Food Toxin, STEC, STEC E.coli, Uncategorized

Italy VCV VEAL HAMBURGER 200 GR – Salmonella

Posted on August 10, 2022 by | Leave a comment

Salute

Brand : VITELLO CASA VERCELLI

Name : VCV VEAL HAMBURGER 200 GR

Reason for reporting : Recall due to microbiological risk

Publication date : 9 August 2022

Documentation

Documentation

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Posted in food contamination, food handler, Food Hazard, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Pathogen, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Safety Management, food safety training, Food Testing, Salmonella, Uncategorized

USA – FDA Is Focusing on Safety of Frozen Berries

Posted on July 27, 2022 by | Leave a comment

Food Safety Tech

From 1983 to 2018, there were 50 outbreaks globally that were attributed to frozen berries: 36 caused by Norovirus and 14 by Hepatitis A.

On July 22, the FDA announced that it is developing a food safety prevention strategy to enhance the safety of fresh and frozen berries. The move comes in response to multiple hepatitis A (HAV) and norovirus (NoV) outbreaks linked to the consumption of both fresh and frozen berries.

The FDA reports that there have been four HAV outbreaks and three NoV outbreaks linked to frozen berries from 1990 to 2016 in the U.S., and since 2011, there have been three HAV outbreaks linked to fresh berries, including a current outbreak linked to fresh organic strawberries.

In addition, from 1983 to 2018, there were 50 outbreaks globally that were attributed to frozen berries: 36 caused by NoV and 14 by HAV. The FDA noted that although freezing preserves berries it generally does not inactivate viruses that may be introduced at various points in the supply chain, such as by infected workers, contaminated water or contaminated food contact surfaces. In addition, fresh berries are generally eaten raw without a kill-step that could eliminate pathogens.

In August, the FDA plans to resume an assignment to collect and test frozen berries that it paused at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The assignment seeks to estimate the prevalence of HAV and NoV in frozen strawberries, raspberries and blackberries and help the FDA identify sites where practices or conditions may exist that constitute safety vulnerabilities.

The FDA also plans to work collaboratively with industry, academia and regulatory partners in the development of a food safety prevention strategy to identify measures that can be taken to limit or prevent contamination from occurring throughout the berry supply chain, approaches to re-enforce control measures and their application as well as areas where additional research is needed.

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Posted in food bourne outbreak, Food Illness, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Virus, Foodborne Illness, foodborne outbreak, foodbourne outbreak, Hepatitis A, Illness, microbial contamination, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk, Norovirus, outbreak, Research, Uncategorized, Virus

Canada – Magnesium Citrate Oral Solution; Microbial contamination

Posted on July 26, 2022 by | Leave a comment

Gov Canada

Summary

Product
Magnesium Citrate Oral Solution
Issue
Health products – Product quality
What to do
  • Stop using the products listed. Consult your health care professional if you have used these products and have health concerns, and for advice on which health products are best for you and your family.
  • Report any health product adverse events or complaints to Health Canada.

Affected products

Issue

Presence of Gluconacetobacter liquefaciens in affected lots.

What you should do

  • Stop using the products listed. Consult your health care professional if you have used these products and have health concerns, and for advice on which health products are best for you and your family.
  • Report any health product adverse events or complaints to Health Canada.

Similar recalls or alerts

Equate (lemon flavour), Personnelle (lemon flavour) and Life Brand (lemon and cherry flavours) Magnesium citrate oral solution saline laxatives recalled due to potential microbial contamination

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Posted in Decontamination Microbial, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Gluconacetobacter liquefaciens, microbial contamination, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk, Uncategorized

RASFF Alerts – Moulds – Tortillas

Posted on July 22, 2022 by | Leave a comment

RASFF

Tortillas infested with moulds from Poland in Belgium, France, Germany, Lithuania, UK and Netherlands

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Posted in food contamination, food handler, Food Hazard, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Safety Management, Food Spoilage, Food Testing, mold, Mould/Mold, RASFF, Uncategorized

China – In China’s Wuhan, cholera-causing bacteria in turtles strikes nerve

Posted on July 15, 2022 by | Leave a comment

Reuters

Detection in the Chinese city of Wuhan of a bacteria that caused cholera in a student and was separately found in samples from softshell turtles at a food market has struck a sensitive nerve with ordinary Chinese people, with some relating it to COVID-19.

The food market where samples from softshell turtles tested positive of the pathogen capable of causing cholera has been disinfected, local authorities said late on Thursday.

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USA – Reoccurring, Emerging, and Persisting Enteric Bacterial Strains

Posted on June 29, 2022 by | Leave a comment

CDC

Some enteric bacterial strains cause acute outbreaks linked to specific sources. Other strains, referred to as reoccurring, emerging, or persisting (REP) strains, can reoccur and periodically cause acute outbreaks. They can also emerge and increase in frequency or persist and cause illnesses over periods of months or years, despite investigation and prevention efforts.

Investigators use a laboratory method called whole genome sequencing (WGS) to identify the DNA fingerprints of bacteria from ill people and from foods, animals, and the environment. These DNA fingerprints represent strains of bacteria.

Investigators use these DNA fingerprints to find outbreaks of enteric (gastrointestinal) diseases. When scientists identify a group of people who got sick around the same time with a strain with the same DNA fingerprint, this represents a possible outbreak. Investigators then work to determine what caused the illnesses. These acute outbreaks tend to start off with a significant rise in illnesses followed by a significant decline over a short period of time.

WGS has also enabled investigators to find and investigate groups of illnesses that are caused by the same strain but that occur over time periods longer than an acute outbreak. These strains can reoccur and periodically cause acute outbreaks, emerge and increasingly cause illness, or persist and cause illnesses over periods of months or years. They may continue to cause illnesses despite investigation and prevention efforts.

Identifying a strain as a REP strain is based on many factors, including the number of illnesses, whether illnesses are increasing, the characteristics of the strain (e.g., multidrug resistance, high virulence, increased transmissibility), and whether the strain is the cause of large or frequent outbreaks.

REP Strain Characteristics

  • Reoccurring strains: Strains repeatedly causing acute outbreaks separated by periods during which the strain either does not make people sick or causes illnesses at very low levels.
  • Emerging strains: Previously novel or rare strains that increasingly cause illnesses or show the potential to cause increasing illness.
  • Persisting strains: Strains causing illnesses consistently over a long time.

CDC’s Role

Since 2019, CDC has used the PulseNet system to identify and monitor REP strains of several major pathogens, including Salmonella, E. coli O157:H7, Listeria, and Campylobacter. PulseNet uses a combination of different WGS tools for identifying and tracking these strains and will develop more as new strains are identified and investigated.

CDC uses information gained from investigations of REP strains to better understand their sources, track how they change over time, and collaborate on measures to reduce their spread.

CDC plans to share detailed information about some REP strains. Links will be available on this web page.

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