Category Archives: Uncategorized

USA – Lipari Foods Issues Voluntary Recall Expansion on Additional Sandwiches Due to Potential Contamination of Listeria Monocytogenes

Posted on January 15, 2020 by | Leave a comment

FDA

Company Announcement

Lipari Foods has issued a voluntary recall expansion of additional Premo and Fresh Grab sandwiches due to potential contamination of Listeria monocytogenes. Listeria monocytogenes is 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 cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women.

The product was distributed exclusively by Lipari Foods in Warren, Michigan to food service and retail stores throughout Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.

The affected product can be identified by:

Brand Product Lipari # Size Best By Date Lot # UPC
Fresh Grab Breakfast Muffin Sandwich 252153 6 oz. 1/23/2020 03202001 612510003039
Fresh Grab Chicken & Swiss Sandwich 252204 5 oz. 1/23/2020 03202001 612510003213
Fresh Grab Turkey & Swiss Sandwich 251694 6 oz. 1/23/2020 03202001 612510001042
Premo Meat Lover’s Sub 970844 7 oz. 1/21/2020 03202001 612510093832
Premo Pub Burger 207970 5 oz. 1/23/2020 03202001 612510003015
Premo Turkey & Cheese on Pretzel Sub 996428 7 oz. 1/23/2020 03202001 612510094037
Premo Turkey & Swiss Sandwich 915537 6 oz. 1/23/2020 03202001 612510001042
Premo Turkey & Garlic Mayo Sandwich 207455 5 oz. 1/21/2020 03202001 612510088494

This recall was brought to our attention by JLM, who is expanding their recent recall to include additional sandwiches due to potential contamination of Listeria monocytogenes. No illnesses have been reported in relation to this recall.

Lipari Foods began shipping this product on January 3, 2020.

Consumers who have purchased these recalled products should not consume them. Consumers should discard the products or return them to the point of purchase. Consumers with questions should call Customer Service at 800-729-3354, 8:15 am – 4:30 pm, EST, Monday through Friday.

Original Recall

Product Photos

  • fresh grab Breakfast Muffin Sandwich
  • fresh grab Chicken & Swiss Sandwich
  • fresh grab Turkey & Swiss Sandwich
  • PREMO BRAND Meat Lover’s Sub
  • PREMO BRAND Pub Burger
  • PREMO BRAND Turkey & Cheese on Pretzel Sub
  • PREMO BRAND Turkey & Swiss Sandwich
  • PREMO BRAND Turkey

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Posted in FDA, food contamination, 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 Testing, Listeria, Listeria monocytogenes, Uncategorized

Viet Nam -101 hospitalized during school trip with food poisoning

Posted on January 14, 2020 by | Leave a comment

VN Express

101 secondary school students and teachers from Tay Ninh Province traveling to neighboring HCMC were hospitalized with food poisoning on Sunday.

After picked up at 5:30 a.m., students of Chu Van An Secondary School, upon traveling to Dam Sen amusement park in HCMC, received a box of chicken sticky rice provided by the hosting travel agency.

At around 9:30 a.m., 71 students started to experience nausea, and were immediately sent to the emergency room at HCMC’s Children’s Hospital 1.

At noon, another 30 cases, including both students and teachers, were sent to HCMC’s District 11 Hospital, with similar symptoms.

In the late afternoon, 22 cases at District 11’s Hospital were released home, while the rest, including one teacher, remained.

HCMC’s health department has collected the food sample to determine the cause of the accident.

Food poisoning occurs

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Posted in food contamination, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Poisoning, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Uncategorized

Research – Prevalence of Salmonella in cucumbers, antibiotic and acid resistances and description of the kinetic behavior with dynamic model during storage

Posted on January 14, 2020 by | Leave a comment

Wiley Online

This study isolated Salmonella from cucumbers, analyzed the antibiotic resistance and acid resistance for the isolates and developed a dynamic model. Salmonella prevalence in cucumbers and their resistances were determined. To describe the kinetic behavior of Salmonella isolates, the isolates were inoculated into cucumbers, and Salmonella cell counts were enumerated during storage at 10–30°C. The Baranyi model was fitted to the cell count data to calculate kinetic parameters (lag phase duration [LPD] and maximum specific growth rate (μmax)], and a polynomial model was fitted to the kinetic parameters as a function of temperature. The model performance was evaluated with root mean square error (RMSE). Using these models, a dynamic model was developed. Salmonella were detected in 3 of 24 cucumbers, all of which were multidrug‐resistant and one was acid‐resistant. As storage temperature increased, LPD decreased and μmax increased. These models were appropriate with 0.367 of RMSE. These results suggest that cross‐contaminated Salmonella could increase during transportation, and it may lead to human infection.

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Posted in Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Technology, microbial contamination, Microbiology, Research, Salmonella, Technology, Uncategorized

Argentina -More than 50 sick in Argentinian city due to Salmonella

Posted on January 14, 2020 by | Leave a comment

Food Safety News

An emergency committee to control the sale of food has been created in a city in northwest Argentina after a spike in Salmonella cases in early 2020.

There have been 51 confirmed cases of Salmonella in Salta so far this year. At least five people have been hospitalized but recovered after treatment.

The committee will be responsible for controlling food sold on public roads at street stalls and at commercial premises. It includes experts from the National University of Salta (UNSA) and Catholic University of Salta (Ucasal).

Officials hope by increasing controls they can bring the rise in infections under control and minimize the risk to the public.

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Posted in food bourne outbreak, food contamination, 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 Testing, foodborne outbreak, foodbourne outbreak, Salmonella, Uncategorized

USA -Yosemite National Park Stomach Illness Outbreak Sickens Visitors

Posted on January 14, 2020 by | Leave a comment

Food Poisoning Bulletin

Federal health officials say a Yosemite National Park stomach illness outbreak has sickened at least a dozen people, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. An investigation has been launched after the reports of illness began, and inspections are being conducted at the service facilities.

The illness or origin of the outbreak have not been identified. Those sickened are recovering or have already recovered. There is no information about this outbreak on Yosemite’s web site.

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Posted in food contamination, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Uncategorized

Research – Acidic environment could boost power of harmful pathogens

Posted on January 14, 2020 by | Leave a comment

Science Daily

When food we’ve swallowed reaches our stomachs, it finds an acidic environment. The low pH in the stomach helps to begin digestion — and has been thought to kill the bacteria that hides in food that otherwise could harm our bodies.

However, recent work from the Ackley and Chandler labs in the Department of Molecular Biosciences at the University of Kansas runs counter to this idea, instead suggesting lower pH in the digestive tract may make some bacterial pathogens even more harmful.

Their findings, published in the peer-reviewed journal PLOS Pathogens, could have implications for addressing the crisis of antibiotic resistance in bacterial infections around the world.

The investigation was performed using small, bacteria-eating organisms called Caenorhabditis elegans.

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Posted in Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, microbial contamination, Microbiology, Research, Uncategorized

Research – Treatment of fresh produce with a Salmonella‐targeted bacteriophage cocktail is compatible with chlorine or peracetic acid and more consistently preserves the microbial community on produce

Posted on January 14, 2020 by | Leave a comment

Wiley Online

Diets rich in minimally processed foods are associated with numerous health benefits, in part, due to their diverse, natural microbiota. However, antimicrobials, such as chlorine and peracetic acid (PAA), that are used to address food safety concerns may damage the natural microflora of fresh produce. One promising approach for targeting pathogenic bacteria in foods without impacting the normal food microbiota are bacteriophages. In this study, we observed that combinational treatment of conventional antimicrobials (PAA and chlorine) and bacteriophages, specifically the Salmonella‐targeted preparation SalmoFresh, retained the bactericidal effectiveness of individual interventions, and in some cases, achieved substantially increased efficacy. Additionally, the bacterial microbiomes of farm fresh and organic produce were less affected after phage treatment compared to PAA and chlorine. Finally, our study revealed that resistance rates against SalmoFresh were relatively minor and unaffected by the stresses introduced after chemical washes and/or bacteriophage treatment.

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Posted in Antimicrobials, Bacteriophage, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Technology, microbial contamination, Microbiology, Research, Salmonella, Technology, Uncategorized

Information -10 of the germiest places in hotel rooms

Posted on January 14, 2020 by | Leave a comment

WFMZ

It’s the busiest travel time of the year. But before you pack up your suitcase and head to Grandma’s for the holidays, there’s something you should know about that hotel room you may be staying in: it’s dirtier than you think!

It looks clean, but just how clean is it?

Before you kick back your feet and turn on the TV, you might want to wipe down that remote with some Lysol wipes. These apparently house guests such as E. Coli, MRSA and Staph.

Be wary of the drinking glasses, especially if the hotel does not have a restaurant or a kitchen to wash the glasses. The habit of some cleaners is to rinse them under the bathroom tap without using soap and dry them with a hotel towel.

Some other tips: skip making your own coffee. Coffee makers can harbor mold and respiratory viruses if not cleaned properly.

And speaking of not being cleaned properly, one investigation of hotel ice buckets found many of them tested positive for E. coli.

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Posted in Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, microbial contamination, Microbiology, Uncategorized

Canada -Scarpone’s Italian Store brand frozen Ground Veal recalled due to E. coli O157:H7

Posted on January 14, 2020 by | Leave a comment

CFIA

Recall details

Ottawa, January 13, 2020 – The Italian Store is recalling Scarpone’s Italian Store brand frozen Ground Veal from the marketplace due to possible E. coli O157:H7 contamination. Consumers should not consume the recalled product described below.

Recalled products

Brand Product Size UPC Codes Additional Information
Scarpone’s Italian Store Ground Veal (frozen) Variable Starting with:
0 200904		 All units sold between December 23, 2019 and January 13, 2020, inclusive. Sold at The Italian Store, 5140 Skyline Way NE, Calgary, AB.

What you should do

If you think you became sick from consuming a recalled product, call your doctor.

Check to see if you have the recalled product in your home. Recalled products should be thrown out or returned to the store where they were purchased.

Food contaminated with E. coli O157:H7 may not look or smell spoiled but can still make you sick. Symptoms can include nausea, vomiting, mild to severe abdominal cramps and watery to bloody diarrhea. In severe cases of illness, some people may have seizures or strokes, need blood transfusions and kidney dialysis or live with permanent kidney damage. In severe cases of illness, people may die.

Background

This recall was triggered by Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) test results. The CFIA is conducting a food safety investigation, which may lead to the recall of other products. If other high-risk products are recalled, the CFIA will notify the public through updated Food Recall Warnings.

The CFIA is verifying that industry is removing the recalled product from the marketplace.

Illnesses

There have been no reported illnesses associated with the consumption of this product.

Product photos

Printer ready version of photos

  • Scarpone's Italian Store - Ground Veal (frozen)
  • Universal Product Code - Scarpone's Italian Store - Ground Veal (frozen)

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Posted in CFIA, E.coli, E.coli O157, E.coli O157:H7, food contamination, 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, STEC, STEC E.coli, Uncategorized

Hong Kong – Import and sale of shellfishes harvested in production areas 35.11 and 35.06 in France suspended

Posted on January 13, 2020 by | Leave a comment

CFS

Issue Date 10.1.2020
Source of Information Centre for Food Safety
Food Product Shellfishes
Product Name and Description Shellfishes harvested in production areas 35.11 and 35.06 in France
Reason For Issuing Alert
  • The CFS received a notification from the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) of the European Commission that shellfishes harvested in the abovementioned areas which were suspected to be contaminated with norovirus were under recall.
  • The CFS immediately followed up with major local importers and retailers. Preliminary investigation found that a local importer had imported not ready-to-eat mussels from the abovementioned areas into Hong Kong which were on sale in its supermarkets.
Action Taken by the Centre for Food Safety
  • For the sake of prudence, the CFS has immediately suspended the import into and sale within Hong Kong of all shellfishes harvested in the two areas concerned.
  • The importer concerned had already voluntarily stopped sale and removed from shelves of the affected product for the sake of prudence.
  • The CFS is tracing the distribution of the affected product.
  • The CFS has informed the French authorities of the import suspension and will also notify the local trade.
  • The CFS will continue to follow up on the incident and take appropriate action to safeguard food safety and public health.
Advice to the Trade Stop using or selling the affected product harvested in the abovementioned areas concerned immediately.
Advice to Consumers
  • One may be infected by norovirus or other pathogenic microorganism if consuming undercooked shellfish which is contaminated. So, shellfish should be thoroughly cooked before consumption.
  • Young children, elderly people, pregnant women and others with weakened immune systems should pay special attention when consuming shellfish.
Further Information The CFS press release

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Posted in CFS, food contamination, food handler, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Poisoning, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Food Virus, Norovirus, Uncategorized, Virus