Category Archives: Uncategorized

Sliced White Mushroom Recall – Listeria monocyotgenes

Listeria Blog

Ciolino Produce was notified that our Highline 8 oz. packaged  Sliced White Mushrooms may be contaminated with Listeria Monocytogenes, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people and others with weakened immune systems. Although healthy individuals may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea. Listeria infection can also cause miscarriages and still births among pregnant women.

The grower/processor, Highline Mushrooms, Leamington, ON, is voluntarily recalling the affected products from all marketplaces. The following Sliced White Mushrooms, sold in 227 g ( 8 oz ) containers bearing lot code L410805 followed by a 4-digit time code ( e.g., L4108051420 ) and a Best Before Date of 12AU15, are affected by this alert.

Brand UPC
Highline Mushrooms 7 71163 00005 2

The product was held for sale at Ciolino Produce, Temperance, MI. / Monroe, MI, on August 10, 2012 – August 12, 2012.

Highline Mushrooms contacted Ciolinos Produce on August 14, 2012 to notify us about the recalled Mushrooms.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency ( CFIA) and Highline Mushrooms are WARNING the public not to consume the Sliced White Mushrooms described below because they may be contaminated with Listeria Monocytogenes.

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

US Recall Cantaloupe Slices – Listeria monocytogens

Kroger

We are dedicated to alerting our customers to unsafe, hazardous or defective products — and take this responsibility very seriously. Please see below for a list of current product recalls:

CANTALOUPE SLICES, **4472; CANTALOUPE CUBE CUP SMALL RANDOM WEIGHT, **4473; CANTALOUPE HALF RANDOM WEIGHT, **4368; CANTALOUPE CUBE CUP SMALL, **4473; CANTALOUPE CUBE CUP LARGE RANDOM WEIGHT, **4358; CANTALOUPE ATHENA EAST, 120 EA; CANTALOUPE HALF, **4368; MELON MIXED CUBE JUMBO RANDOM WEIGHT, **54830; CANTALOUPE QUARTER, **4361; CANTALOUPE CUBE CUP LARGE, **4358; CANTALOUPE SLICES RANDOM WEIGHT, **4472; MELON MIXED FRUIT BOWL RANDOM WEIGHT, **54254; MELON MIXED FRUIT CUP RANDOM WEIGHT, **54253; MELON MIXED FRUIT CUP RANDOM WEIGHT, **54252; MELON MIXED CUBE CUP LARGE RANDOM WEIGHT, **4363; MELON MIXED CUBE CUP SMALL RANDOM WEIGHT, **54878; MELON MIXED CUBE CUP LARGE, **4363
Affected in Kroger stores located in Greater Memphis, TN, Arkansas, Mississippi and Western Kentucky.

Reason:The product may be contaminated with LISTERIA MONOCYTOGENES and, if eaten, could result in severe illness to those individuals who are pregnant or have a weakened immune system.

3M AOAC Approval – 3M™ Molecular Detection Assays Salmonella and E.coli O157

3M

3M is really pleased to have received AOAC-PTM certification for both our 3M™ Molecular Detection Assays Salmonella and E.coli O157 and with further validation work underway we will continue to emphasise the value of this fast, accurate pathogen detection system. For further information about the 3M™ Molecular Detection System and its capability an on-demand webcast is available, to register simply visit www.3m.co.uk/pathogens.”

3M’s Food Safety business has received AOAC-PTM Certification (#071202) for its new 3M Molecular Detection Assay for E. coli O157 (including H7) from the AOAC Research Institute’s Performance Tested MethodsSM Program. The certification gives food processors greater assurance in safeguarding against pathogenic E. coli, a causative agent of foodborne illness.

Introduced in December 2011, the 3M Molecular Detection System combines two innovative technologies – isothermal DNA amplification and bioluminescence detection – to provide a fast and reliable method of pathogen detection in enriched food, feed and food process environmental samples. Determined to be equivalent to standard FDA and USDA reference methods for the detection of E. coli O157, this AOAC-PTM certification validates 3M’s new molecular approach for pathogen detection.

The PTM validation of E. coli O157 follows an earlier validation of the Salmonella assay from the AOAC Research Institute, which bases certification of methods on independent study results demonstrating that a given method meets its product performance claims.  For the 3M Molecular Detection Assay E. coli O157 method PTM study, artificially contaminated samples were enriched and evaluated by the 3M Molecular Detection System as compared to the appropriate FDA or USDA FSIS reference method. Sample groups evaluated included raw ground beef, bagged spinach and sprouts. No statistically significant differences were found in sample results between the 3M Molecular Detection Assay E. coli O157 (including H7) and reference methods.

“We are very excited about this validation and what it means for the 3M Molecular Detection System,” said Matt Bricknell, technical service specialist with 3M’s Food Safety business. “AOAC-PTM approval of 3M’s Salmonella and E. coli O157 (including H7) assays are the first of numerous validations we are seeking for this product line, emphasising the value of a pathogen detection solution that is fast, accurate, easy-to-use and affordable.”

The company developed the 3M Molecular Detection System and its test kits with the needs of its worldwide food processing customers in mind, involving them early in the design process. As a result, a powerful technology was produced, capable of targeting and amplifying nucleic acid in enriched samples with excellent sensitivity and specificity.

US Care Home – Salmonella Outbreak

Food Poisoning Journal

South Heartland District Health Department along with the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services is investigating an outbreak of Salmonellosis associated with the Blue Hill Care Center in Webster County. To date there have been 17 confirmed cases and 2 probable or suspected cases reported in residents, staff or visitors. Four residents were temporarily hospitalized after showing symptoms. A visitor is still hospitalized. Blue Hill Care Center is cooperating fully with the investigation to help identify the source and eradicate the issue.

European Alerts – E.coli, Salmonella,

Roquefort Cheese –

Lot No.: 120466192 DDM: 10/11/2012 DDM: 10/11/2012 Reason: Presence of Escherichia coli 0103: H2.  Testing revealed in these products, the presence of Escherichia coli O103: H2.

It is therefore asked the people who hold these products not to consume them and take to the point of sale where they were purchased for a refund.

Bean Sprouts – Salmonella Belgium

Delhaize Belgium is asking customers to bring products as listed in the release below into store where they purchased it. Delhaize is advising its customers not to consume these products. Due to possible presence of Salmonella in bean sprouts in these products.

 

Dropping Food – Five Second Rule?

Science Daily

The hot dog that rolls off the plate, the baby’s cookie that falls on the floor, the candy bar that slides across the table — conventional ‘wisdom’ has that you have five seconds to pick it up before it is contaminated.

A dropped item is immediately contaminated and can’t really be sanitized,” says Jorge Parada, MD, MPH, FACP, FIDSA, medical director of the infection prevention and control program at Loyola University Health System. “When it comes to folklore, the ‘five-second rule’ should be replaced with ‘when in doubt, throw it out’.”

All items that come into contact with a surface pick up bacteria (and dirt!). How much bacteria and what kind of microbes depends on the object dropped and the surface it is dropped upon, he says.

China Vows to Stamp Out Food Safety Scandals

The Telegraph 

China has vowed to stamp out major food safety scandals in three years after fears surfaced that athletes might underperform at the Olympics because they were avoiding eating potentially contaminated meat.

Reports about shocking and often bizarre cases of contamination or adulteration appear in the Chinese media on an almost daily basis.

On Tuesday the Legal Daily newspaper reported that police in northeast China had arrested 6 people behind a £1.3m “fake beer” racket. Police claim the gang used hydrochloric acid and formaldehyde to produce counterfeit beer, including the country’s flagship Tsingtao lager.

The Telegraph China’s Top 10 Food Safety Scandals

RASFF Alerts – Aflatoxins,

RASFF – Aflatoxins in roasted kernels in Romania sourced in Turkey

RASFF – Salmonella in Minced Pork Hilton Foods – Denmark

More Pet Food Recalls – USA – Salmonella

FDA

Diamond Pet Foods is expanding a voluntary recall to include its Diamond Naturals Small Breed Adult Dog Lamb & Rice Formula dry dog food manufactured on Aug. 26, 2011 due to potential exposure to Salmonella. No illnesses have been reported. The product was distributed in the following states:  Colorado, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas and Wisconsin. Further distribution through other pet food channels may have occurred. 

Pet owners may call toll-free at 1-866-918-8756, Monday through Sunday, 8 am – 6 pm EST. Diamond Pet Foods apologizes for any issues this may have caused pet owners and their pets.
       
The product is Diamond Naturals Small Breed Adult Dog Lamb & Rice Formula. Only samples, 6 pound and 18 pound bag sizes are affected

Pets with Salmonella infections may have decreased appetite, fever and abdominal pain. If left untreated, pets may be lethargic and have diarrhea, fever and vomiting. Infected but otherwise healthy pets can be carriers and infect other animals or humans. If your pet has consumed the recalled product and has these symptoms, please contact your veterinarian.

Individuals handling dry pet food can become infected with Salmonella, especially if they have not thoroughly washed their hands after having contact with surfaces exposed to this product. People who believe they may have been exposed to Salmonella should monitor themselves for some or all of the following symptoms: nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal cramping and fever. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, people who are more likely to be affected by Salmonella include infants, children younger than 5 years old, organ transplant patients, people with HIV/AIDS and people receiving treatment for cancer

Oyster Sauce – From China – Staphylococcus saprophyticus

RASFF

Staphylococcus – coagulase negative (Staphylococcus saprophyticus) in oyster sauce from China, via Poland

   
Reference :2012.0605  
Notification date :02/05/2012  
Last update :02/05/2012  
Notification type : food  –  information for follow-up  –  consumer complaint  
Action taken : withdrawal from the market  
Notification from : CZECH REPUBLIC (CZ)  
Distribution status :information on distribution not (yet) available  
Product :oyster sauce  
Product category :soups, broths, sauces and condiments  
Follow-up :

Reference Follow-up from Date Follow-up type Info
Hazards :

Substance / Hazard Category Analytical result Units Sampling date
Staphylococcus – coagulase negative pathogenic micro-organisms Staphylococcus saprophyticus    
Distributed to :

| CZECH REPUBLIC  |
Origin :

| CHINA | POLAND  (VIA)  |