Category Archives: Uncategorized

Ghana – Vegetable sauce cause of food poisoning at Archbishop Porters SHS: official

Posted on April 1, 2019 by | Leave a comment

Pulse.com

About 60 students of the school were rushed to the Holy Child Hospital after complaining of stomach pains whiles some had diarrhea.

Medical Superintendent of the hospital, Sylvester Fameye, said 15 students had to be admitted due to their condition while others were treated and discharged.

On the cause of the food poison, Famye said the students bought and ate a refrigerated vegetable sauce.

“From the history we took, they bought vegetable sauce that was stored in a refrigerator by one seller in the school,” the medical superintendent said.

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

USA – FDA issues warning to dog owners after pet food tests positive for Salmonella

Posted on April 1, 2019 by | Leave a comment

10 News

 

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued a warning to dog owners who feed Fido Darwin’s Natural Pet Food.

According to the FDA website, some samples of the dog food tested positive for salmonella.

The lots you should avoid feeding your dog include:

Product Lot Code Manufacture Date
Darwin’s Natural Pet Products Natural Selections Chicken Recipe with Organic Vegetables for Dogs 5309(11)181019 October 19, 2018
Darwin’s Natural Pet Products Natural Selections Chicken Recipe with Organic Vegetables for Dogs 5375(11)181106 November 11, 2018
Darwin’s Natural Pet Products Natural Selections Turkey Recipe with Organic Vegetables for Dogs 5339(11)181026 October 26, 2018

Dog owners who have the above lots of Darwin’s Natural Pet Food should throw them away “in a secure container where other animals, including wildlife, cannot access it.”

 

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

Singapore- Food poisoning cases jump to 238 as Plan Student Care Centre and 5 more PCF Sparkletots centres hit

Posted on April 1, 2019 by | Leave a comment

Asia One

SINGAPORE – Children and staff at five more PCF Sparkletots pre-schools have reported symptoms of food poisoning, bringing the total number of cases to 222 as of 4pm on Thursday (March 28).

The 12 PCF pre-schools and Plan Student Care Centre were all served by Kate’s Catering, which has been suspended.

Of those affected, 14 remain in hospital but are in stable condition, while 11 have been discharged.

Food handlers were sent for stool screening, and food and environmental samples were taken for testing as part of the investigations.

When contacted by ST, a spokesman for Kate’s Catering said it was working with the respective authorities.

In its update on Friday (March 29), MOH said that food poisoning or food-borne illness often causes vomiting and diarrhoea which may lead to dehydration, especially in young children and the elderly.

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

USA – E. coli O103 Outbreak in Kentucky, Tennessee, Ohio, and Indiana

Posted on April 1, 2019 by | Leave a comment

Food Poisoning Bulletin

CDC E.coli

Image CDC

The E. coli O103 outbreak originally announced in Kentucky yesterday  apparently also has sickened people living in Tennessee, Ohio, and Indiana, according to news reports. Twenty confirmed cases are in Kentucky, and one each in the other states for a total of 23 ill. Most of the illnesses occurred between March 5 and 25, 2019.

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Posted in E.coli, E.coli O103, eae, food contamination, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Poisoning, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Food Toxin, STEC, STX 1, STX 2, Uncategorized

Canada – Correction – Updated Food Recall Warning – Lee’s Tea brand Teas recalled due to Salmonella

Posted on April 1, 2019 by | Leave a comment

CFIA

Ottawa, March 29, 2019 – The food recall warning issued on March 28, 2019 has been amended to correctly identify the affected products and updated to include additional product information. The corrections for these products are marked by an asterisk (*). This additional information was identified during the Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s (CFIA) food safety investigation.

Lee’s Provisions Inc. is recalling Lee’s Tea brand teas from the marketplace due to possible Salmonella contamination. Consumers should not consume the recalled products described below.

Affected products

Brand Name Common Name Size Code(s) on Product UPC
Lee’s Tea Gold Rush Loose Leaf 105 g 4-102318
04-23018*
4-102518
2021FE11
2021FE15
04-02011
04-02021		 6 28055 21002 3
Lee’s Tea Gold Rush Loose Leaf 110 g 2020DE07 6 28055 21002 3
Lee’s Tea Mint Chill Loose Leaf 60 g 2-102518
02-25018*
02-01019
02-19018*
02-02021		 6 28055 21003 0
Lee’s Tea Mint Chill Loose Leaf 70 g 2020DE07 6 28055 21003 0
Lee’s Tea Original Loose Leaf 50 g 2020DE07
2020MR21		 6 28055 21001 6
Lee’s Tea Original Loose Leaf 60 g 1-101918
01-19018*
1-102518
01-25018*		 6 28055 21001 6
Lee’s Tea Pink Chai Loose Leaf 90 g 3-112018
3-102518
03-25018*
2020DE07
2021JA07
2021JA23
2021FE05
2021FE11
03-02021
03-01019
03-19018*
03-02011		 6 28055 21004 7
Lee’s Tea Pink Chai Loose Leaf 30 g 3062718 6 28055 21014 6

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

Research – Effects of Sodium Chloride or Calcium Chloride Concentration on the Growth and Survival of Escherichia coli O157:H7 in Model Vegetable Fermentations

Posted on March 31, 2019 by | Leave a comment

Journal of Food Protection

Salt concentration has long been considered an important factor for the quality of fermented vegetable products, but the role of salts in bacterial growth and death during vegetable fermentation remains unclear. We compared the effects of various sodium chloride (NaCl) concentrations, including 1 M (6%) NaCl used in commercial cucumber fermentations and 0.34 M (2%) NaCl used in cabbage and other ready-to-eat vegetable fermentations, on the growth and death of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) of the genus Lactobacillus and pathogenic Escherichia coli (Shiga toxin–producing E. coli, or STEC) strains. We also investigated calcium chloride (CaCl2) salt conditions. CaCl2 is being used at 0.1 M (1.1%) in low-salt commercial cucumber fermentations that lack added NaCl. STEC strains have previously been shown to be among the most acid-resistant pathogens in fermented or acidified vegetables. The data showed that 1.1% CaCl2, and especially 1% NaCl, had a stimulatory effect on the growth rates of STEC and LAB compared with a no-salt control, but higher NaCl concentrations decreased growth rates for STEC; to a lesser extent, LAB growth rates were also reduced. For most salt concentrations tested, maximum cell densities achieved during growth of STEC were reduced compared with those of the no-salt controls, whereas LAB mostly had cell densities that were similar to or greater than those of the no-salt controls. No consistent pattern was observed when comparing death rates with salt type or concentration for the STEC or LAB cocktails undergoing lactic acid stress (50 or 350 mM, respectively) at pH 3.2 and when comparing STEC survival in competitive culture experiments with LAB. For vegetable fermentation safety concerns, the results suggest that an important effect of salt addition is enhancement of the growth of LAB compared with STEC strains. Further research will be needed to determine factors influencing STEC survival in competition with LAB in vegetable fermentations.

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Posted in E.coli, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Technology, Food Testing, lactic acid bacteria, microbial contamination, STEC, Uncategorized

Research – Risk Assessment of Botulism from Chilled, VP/MAP (Vacuum Packed/Modified Atmosphere Packed) Fresh Meat held at 3°C to 8°C

Posted on March 31, 2019 by | Leave a comment

MLA

cdc clost spore

Image CDC

The UK Food Standards Agency VP/MAP (Vacuum Packed/Modified Atmosphere Packed) Guidance (FSA, 2017) restricts the shelf-life of VP/MAP foods (including fresh meat) held at 3°C to 8°C to 10 days, unless suitable grounds for a longer shelf-life can be identified. This project has used a risk assessment approach and carried out a challenge test experiment, to establish whether a shelf-life of greater than 10 days can be applied to fresh chilled meat (as it lacks a single known controlling factor). Fresh meat is taken to mean “meat that has not undergone any preserving process other than chilling, freezing or quick-freezing, including meat that is VP or MAP wrapped”.

A search of the literature failed to uncover any cases of botulism associated with fresh chilled VP or MAP meat.

Data provided by industry members of the project consortium indicates that UK industry applies a maximum chilled retail pack shelf life at 3°C to 8°C of up to 23 days for beef, 27 days for lamb, and 18 days for pork. Using a risk assessment approach, it was established that the current industry practice provides a high level of protection with respect to non-proteolytic Clostridium botulinum, estimated as >10.8 safety units (decimal number of products (i.e. >10 10.8) marketed per number causing botulism).

There is no evidence that currently-applied UK shelf lives combined with current production standards are unsafe. If changes are made to industry practice, then these may affect the level of protection.

A new challenge test study demonstrated that samples of beef and lamb inoculated with spores of non-proteolytic C. botulinum and incubated at 8°C, did not become toxic to day 50 for beef, day 35 for lamb, or day 25 for pork (i.e. <40 pg type B toxin g-1 of meat and <40 pg type E toxin g-1 of meat).

The estimation of the level of protection and the results from the new challenge test experiment both support a shelf-life of greater than 10 days for fresh chilled beef, lamb and pork held at 3°C to 8°C, and also support currently-applied UK shelf lives combined with current production standards.

The ability not to be constrained by a 10-day shelf-life, as indicated in present FSA (2017) guidelines, and the freedom to adopt a shelf-life greater than 10 days at 3°C to 8°C for fresh chilled beef, lamb and pork is of significant economic/social/sustainability benefits to producers/processors/retailers. Such freedom removes a technical barrier to trade. There may also be environmental/consumer benefits through lower food wastage.

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

Research – Prevalence and Numbers of Listeria monocytogenes in Various Ready-to-Eat Foods over a 5-Year Period in Estonia

Posted on March 31, 2019 by | Leave a comment

Journal of Food Protection

The prevalence and numbers of Listeria monocytogenes in various categories of ready-to-eat (RTE) food products taken from retail outlets and food industries over a 5-year period are presented. A total of 30,016 RTE food samples were analyzed for L. monocytogenes prevalence, and 3.6% were found to be positive. The highest prevalence was found for RTE fish and fish products (11.6%), especially for lightly salted and cold-smoked fish products. The overall prevalence of L. monocytogenes in other food categories was low, within the range of 0 to 3.9%. In addition, 14,342 RTE food samples were analyzed to determine the numbers of L. monocytogenes. A food safety criterion of 100 CFU/g was exceeded for 0.3% of RTE food samples. Samples most often exceeding the legal safety limit were from the RTE salted and cold-smoked fish product categories. High prevalence, 28.6 and 26.5%, respectively, and high numbers of L. monocytogenes among salted fish and cold-smoked fish products indicate a risk of listeriosis, especially for susceptible risk groups. The results of the current study can be used at both the national and the international levels to update the perception of the L. monocytogenes risk deriving from RTE foods.

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Posted in food contamination, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Pathogen, Food Safety, Food Testing, Listeria, Listeria monocytogenes, Uncategorized

Research -Salmonella could be combated by enhancing body’s natural process

Posted on March 30, 2019 by | Leave a comment

Science Daily 

Autophagy — the process of recycling cellular material in the body — can help combat Salmonella and other pathogens, according to researchers at the School of Life Sciences, University of Warwick who have studied how autophagy can get rid of bacteria, and prevent diseases developing.

An interdisciplinary team of researchers led by Dr Ioannis Nezis from the School of Life Sciences, University of Warwick, and Dr Tamas Korscmaros from Earlham Institute and Quadram Institute, Norwich, UK screened the proteome from 56 pathogenic bacterial species — to see how autophagy reacts with them.

Some of the 56 species screened included Salmonella, Shigella, Listeria, Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Staphylococcus. They identified how host cells use autophagy to clear invading bacteria, but also how bacteria use their proteins to escape this clearance.

They found that host cells use autophagy to target specific bacterial proteins for recycling. These bacterial proteins could be used by the bacteria to help them escape their clearance.

Salmonella is a food born pathogenic bacterium and it is the second most common cause of childhood mortality in the developing world. Understanding how host cells sense and combat Salmonella infection would lead to new therapies. They identified Salmonella YhjJ protein which interacts with autophagy protein LC3 and can cleave other autophagy proteins to inhibit their function.

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Posted in Salmonella, Uncategorized

Research – Enzymatic Inactivation of Pathogenic and Nonpathogenic Bacteria in Biofilms in Combination with Chlorine

Posted on March 30, 2019 by | Leave a comment

Journal of Food Protection

This study investigated the effects of enzyme application on biofilms of bacterial isolates from a cafeteria kitchen and foodborne pathogens and the susceptibility of Salmonella biofilms to proteinase K combined with chlorine treatment. For four isolates from a cafeteria kitchen (Acinetobacter, Enterobacter, and Kocuria) and six strains of foodborne pathogens (Salmonella enterica, Staphylococcus aureus, and Vibrio parahaemolyticus), the inhibitory effect of enzymes on biofilm formation at 25°C for 24 h or the degradative efficacy of enzymes on 24-h mature biofilm at 37°C for 1 h in tryptic soy broth (TSB) was examined in a polystyrene microtiter plate. The effect of enzymes was also evaluated on a subset of these strains in 20 times diluted TSB (1/20 TSB) at 25°C. The working concentrations of five enzymes were 1 U/100 μL for α-amylase, amyloglucosidase, cellulase, and DNase and 1 milli-Anson unit/100 μL for proteinase K. In addition, 24-h mature SalmonellaTyphimurium biofilm on a stainless steel coupon was treated with proteinase K for 1 h at 25°C followed by 20 ppm of chlorine for 1 min at 25°C. The results showed that certain enzymes inhibited biofilm formation by the kitchen-originated bacteria; however, the enzymatic effect was diminished on the mature biofilms. Biofilm formation of V. parahaemolyticus was suppressed by all tested enzymes, whereas the mature biofilm was degraded by α-amylase, DNase I, and proteinase K. Proteinase K was effective in controlling Salmonella biofilms, whereas a strain-dependent variation was observed in S. aureusbiofilms. In 1/20 TSB, Enterobacter cancerogenus and Kocuria varians were more susceptible to certain enzymes during biofilm formation than those in TSB, whereas the enzymatic effect was much decreased on 24-h mature biofilms, regardless of nutrient conditions. Furthermore, synergistic inactivation of Salmonella Typhimurium in biofilms was observed in the combined treatment of proteinase K followed by chlorine. Live/Dead assays also revealed a decrease in density and loss of membrane integrity in Salmonella Typhimurium biofilms exposed to the combined treatment. Therefore, certain enzymes can control biofilms of isolates residing in a cafeteria kitchen and foodborne pathogens. This study demonstrates the potential of enzymes for the sanitation of food processing environments and of proteinase K combined with chlorine to control Salmonella biofilms on food contact surfaces.

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Posted in Biofilm, Salmonella, Staphylococcus aureus, Uncategorized, Vibrio parahaemolyticus