Category Archives: Uncategorized

New Zealand – Shellfish biotoxin alert – Taranaki/Waikato coastline

Posted on August 2, 2019 by | Leave a comment

MPI

The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) today issued a public health warning advising the public not to collect or consume shellfish harvested on the West Coast (Taranaki/Waikato) of the North Island between Oakura north to Albatross Point south of Kawhia Harbour.

Routine tests on shellfish samples taken from this region have shown levels of Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning (PSP) toxins above the safe limit of 0.8 mg/kg set by MPI. Anyone eating shellfish from this area is potentially at risk of illness.

Map highlighting in red the areas affected.

Mussels, oysters, tuatua, pipi, toheroa, cockles, scallops, catseyes, kina (sea urchin) and all other bivalve shellfish should not be eaten.

Note: Cooking shellfish does not remove the toxin.

Pāua, crab and crayfish may still be eaten if the gut has been completely removed prior to cooking, as toxins accumulate in the gut. If the gut is not removed its contents could contaminate the meat during the cooking process.

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Posted in Algal Toxin, food contamination, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Food Toxin, paralytic shellfish poisoning, PSP, Toxin, Uncategorized

Ireland – Recall of Prymat White Mustard Seeds due to Presence of Salmonella Typhimurium

Posted on August 2, 2019 by | Leave a comment

FSAI

Summary
Category 1: For Action
Alert Notification: 2019.35
Product: Prymat Gorczyca Biała cała (white mustard seeds); pack size: 30 g
Batch Code: 1298133, ‘best-before’ date: 31/05/2022
Country Of Origin: Poland

Message:

Salmonella Typhimurium has been detected in the above batch of white mustard seeds. The implicated batch may cause illness if consumed raw.  The affected batch has been removed from sale and a point-of-sale recall notice must be displayed where the batch has been sold.

 

Nature Of Danger:

People infected with Salmonella typically develop symptoms between 12 and 36 hours after infection, but this can range between 6 and 72 hours.  The most common symptom is diarrhoea, which can sometimes be bloody.  Other symptoms may include fever, headache and abdominal cramps.  The illness usually lasts 4 to 7 days. Diarrhoea can occasionally be severe enough to require hospital admission. The elderly, infants, and those with impaired immune systems are more likely to have a severe illness.

Action Required:

Manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors, caterers & retailers:

Food businesses who have sold the implicated batch are requested to remove it from sale and clearly display a point of sale notice informing customers not to eat it.

Consumers:

Consumers are advised not to eat the implicated batch. Consumers who may have already consumed the affected batch and are feeling unwell should seek medical advice.
Mustard_seeds

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Posted in food contamination, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Pathogen, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, FSAI, Salmonella, Uncategorized

UK – Listeria cases being investigated An investigation is underway into cases of listeria linked to sandwiches. Update Sixth person dead

Posted on August 2, 2019 by | Leave a comment

Gov.uk

Latest update

The multi-agency team investigating cases of listeriosis linked to sandwiches and salads can confirm that, since the last update, there has been another death linked to this outbreak. The total number of deaths linked to this outbreak is 6.

The individual who sadly died was one of the 9 previously confirmed cases. The individual is considered to have acquired listeriosis from Good Food Chain products while at Western Sussex Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

Public Health England continues to test all samples of listeria on an ongoing basis to check if they are linked to this outbreak. To date, we have tested 34 samples and none are linked to the outbreak.

There have been no new cases of listeriosis linked to this outbreak. Our investigations continue and the public should be reassured that the risk continues to be low.

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Posted in food contamination, food death, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Pathogen, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Standards Agency, Food Testing, Listeria, Listeria monocytogenes, Uncategorized

RASFF Alerts – Duck Carcases – Chicken Inner Fillet – Breaded Chicken Strips – Sesame Seeds – Black Pepper – Crocodile Burger – Chicken Breast Cordon Bleu – Chicken Legs

Posted on August 2, 2019 by | Leave a comment

RASFF-Logo

RASFF – Salmonella (presence /25g) in ducks carcasses from the Czech Republic in Poland

RASFF – Salmonella enterica ser. Enteritidis (presence /25g) in frozen chicken inner fillet from Poland, via the United Kingdom in France

RASFF – Salmonella (presence /25g) in frozen breaded chicken strips from Poland in France

RASFF – Salmonella (in 2 out of 5 samples /25g) in black pepper from Brazil in the Netherlands

RASFF – Salmonella (presence /25g) in sesame seeds from Sudan in Greece

RASFF – Salmonella (presence /25g) in sesame seeds from Ethiopia in Greece

RASFF – Salmonella (presence /25g) in frozen crocodile burger from Belgium in Belgium

RASFF – Salmonella enterica ser. Infantis (in 5 out of 5 samples /25g) in frozen chicken breast cordon bleu from Germany in Finland

RASFF – Salmonella enterica ser. Derby (presence /25g) in chilled chicken legs from Poland in Lithuania

RASFF – Salmonella (presence /25g) in sesame seeds from Sudan in Poland

RASFF – Salmonella (presence /25g) in sesame seeds from Nigeria, via Singapore in the Netherlands

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Posted in food contamination, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Pathogen, Food Poisoning, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, RASFF, Salmonella, Salmonella Sesame Seeds, Uncategorized

RASFF Alerts – Animal Feed – Salmonella – Rape Seed Meal – Soya Bean Meal – Fish Meal

Posted on August 2, 2019 by | Leave a comment

RASFF-Logo

RASFF – Salmonella enterica ser. Münster (presence /25g) and Salmonella enterica ser. Tennessee (presence /25g) in rape seed meal from Russia in Finland

RASFF – Salmonella enterica ser. Tennessee (presence /25g) in rape seed meal from Germany in Finland

RASFF – Salmonella (presence /25g) in soya bean meal from Brazil in Poland

RASFF – Salmonella enterica ser. Kalina (in 3 out of 5 samples /25g) in fish meal from Mauritania in Greece

RASFF – Salmonella (presence /25g) in soybean meal from Brazil, via Italy, via Slovenia and via Austria in Croatia

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Posted in Animal Feed, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology Blog, microbial contamination, Microbiology, RASFF, Salmonella, Uncategorized

Research – Listeria and Pregnancy

Posted on August 2, 2019 by | Leave a comment

Food Poisoning Bulletin

Why are Pregnant Women So at Risk for Listeria Infections?

One theory is that in pregnancy, the immune system is suppressed so the body doesn’t reject the embryo and fetus. This reduction in immunity may be why these women are so susceptible to listeriosis and why the complications can be so severe. Researchers at Berkeley, however, discovered that Listeria monocytogenes bacteria use the immune system suppression to invade the placenta where they are protected from the mother’s immune system.

Once the bacteria are in the placenta, they can grow rapidly, then emerge to infect the maternal liver and spleen. One theory is that miscarriage occurs as a defense mechanism so the body is protected from the source of the bacteria’s growth. It is difficult for any bacteria to cross the placental barrier, but once they do, complications can be very serious. Scientists think that the bacteria can cross the endothelium of the maternal blood vessels, and get into the fetal circulatory system of the placental villi.

Food Poisoning Bulletin

Listeria May be Serious Miscarriage Threat in Early Pregnancy

New research conducted at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and published in the journal mBio has found that Listeria monocytogenes food poisoning can be a serious miscarriage threat in early pregnancy. Scientists at the university’s School of Veterinary Medicine studied how pathogens affect fetal development and change pregnancy outcomes.

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

USA – Pigs Ears – Salmonella

Posted on August 2, 2019 by | Leave a comment

Food Poisoning Bulletin

Lennox INtl Inc, located in Edison, New Jersey, is expanding its voluntary recall of its Natural pig ear dog treats for possible Salmonella contamination. The press release states, “To date, Lennox is aware of cases of human illnessrelated to an ongoing Salmonella outbreak in which several people identified Lennox pig eat treats as the brand they purchased. Individually shrink-wrapped product tested by FDA tested positive for Salmonella. Lennox’s pig ears are also sold bulk unwrapped.”

CDC

Latest Outbreak Information
Illustration of a clipboard with check marks on it.
At A Glance
Photo of some pet treats.
  • CDC and FDA are now advising people not to buy or feed any pig ear dog treats to pets, including any that may already be in homes.
  • People can get sick after handling the treats or caring for dogs who ate the treats. Dogs might get sick after eating them.
  • Since the last update on July 17, 2019, a total of 34 ill people have been added to this investigation.
  • A total of 127 people infected with the outbreak strains of Salmonella have been reported from 33 states.
    • 26 ill people (30%) have been hospitalized. No deaths have been reported.
    • 24 illnesses (21%) are among children younger than 5 years.
  • Epidemiologic, laboratory and traceback evidence indicates that contact with pig ear dog treats from many different suppliers is the likely source of this outbreak.
  • State health and regulatory officials in several states and the FDA have tested pig ear dog treats at various suppliers and identified many different strains of Salmonella. No single supplier, distributor or common brand of pig ear treats has been identified that could account for all the illnesses. This is why CDC and FDA are now advising people to not buy or feed any pig ear dog treats to pets.
  • This investigation is ongoing and CDC will provide updates when more information is available.

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Posted in Animal Feed, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology Blog, microbial contamination, Microbiology, Pet Food, Salmonella Dog Food, Uncategorized

Research – Physiological traits and relative abundance of species as explanatory variables of co-occurrence pattern of cultivable bacteria associated with chia seeds

Posted on August 1, 2019 by | Leave a comment

Canadian Journal of Microbiological Research

Deciphering the rules defining microbial community assemblage is envisioned as a promising strategy to improve predictions of pathogens colonization and proliferation in food. Despite the increasing number of studies reporting microbial co-occurrence patterns, only a few attempts have been made to challenge them in experimental or theoretical frameworks. Here, we tested the hypothesis that observed variations in co-occurrence patterns can be explained by taxonomy, relative abundance, and physiological traits of microbial species. We used PCR amplicon sequencing of taxonomic markers to assess distribution and co-occurrence patterns of bacterial and fungal species found in 25 chia (Salvia hispanica L.) samples originating from eight different sources. The use of nutrient-rich and oligotrophic media enabled isolation of 71 strains encompassing 16 bacterial species, of which five corresponded to phylotypes represented in the molecular survey. Tolerance to different growth inhibitors and antibiotics was tested to assess the physiological traits of these isolates. Divergence of physiological traits and relative abundance of each pair of species explained 69% of the co-occurrence profile displayed by cultivable bacterial phylotypes in chia. Validation of this ecological network conceptualization approach to more food products is required to integrate microbial species co-occurrence patterns in predictive microbiology.

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

Denmark -WGS project helps Denmark uncover Campylobacter outbreak

Posted on August 1, 2019 by | Leave a comment

Food Safety News

Fifty people are ill in Denmark from Campylobacter after eating chicken meat but authorities believe the actual number of patients may be much higher.

Statens Serum Institut (SSI), Danish Veterinary and Food Administration (Fødevarestyrelsen) and DTU Food – National Food Institute are investigating the Campylobacter jejuni outbreak.

Campylobacter is the main cause of bacterial intestinal infections in Denmark and more than 4,500 cases were registered in 2018.

The same type of Campylobacter, sequence type 122, identified in patients by whole genome sequencing has also been found in chicken meat from one slaughterhouse, named as HKScan in Vinderup, a town in Northwestern Jutland.

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Posted in Campylobacter, food contamination, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Pathogen, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Technology, Food Testing, Uncategorized, WGS

USA – E. coli hits South Dakota – Sisseton Area

Posted on July 31, 2019 by | Leave a comment

Food Poison Journal

According to KSFY, the South Dakota Department of Health is investigating several cases of E. coli in northeastern South Dakota. The cases are in and around the Sisseton area.

Source not identified

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Posted in Contaminated water, E.coli, food contamination, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Pathogen, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Uncategorized, water microbiology, Water Safety