Category Archives: Uncategorized

An E. coli outbreak in Knox County, Tennessee has sickened several children, according to the Health Department. According to news reports, the only common factors officials can confirm at this time is that the cases are in this E. coli outbreak are occurring during the same time period.

Outbreak News Today

In a follow-up on the Escherichia coli ( E. coli ) O26 outbreak linked to the consumption of raw milk reblochons produced at the Cruseilles (Haute-Savoie) site of Chabert, French health officials are now reporting 14 children aged one to five years included in the investigation.

As of May 31, 6 children with HUS were infected with the same strain of E. coli 026, for which the consumption of reblochon incriminated is documented. These six children are domiciled in several regions of metropolitan France (Center-Val de Loire, PACA, Ile-de-France, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Pays-de-la-Loire); and

For 8 other children, investigations are in progress. Of these, two had signs of gastroenteritis and six had HUS. One of the children with HUS died; the investigation around this case is in progress. To date, it can not be dismissed or affirmed that these cases of HUS are linked to the consumption of reblochon: non-isolated and characterized strain, or consumption of reblochon incriminated not yet documented.

ASM 

Lettuce has been implicated in human norovirus (HuNoV) outbreaks. The virus is stable on the leaf surface for at least 2 weeks; however, the dynamics of virus internalization have not been fully investigated. The purpose of this study was to assess the internalization and distribution of HuNoV and two surrogate viruses, porcine sapovirus (SaV) and Tulane virus (TV), in lettuce and spinach. Viral inoculations through the roots of seedlings and the petiole of leaves from mature plants were performed, and the viruses were tracked on days 1 and 6 post-root inoculation and at 16 h and 72 h post-petiole inoculation. Confocal microscopy was used to visualize root-internalized HuNoV. In both lettuce and spinach, (i) HuNoV was internalized into the roots and leaves at similar RNA titers, whereas surrogate viruses were more restricted to the roots, (ii) all three viruses were stable inside the roots and leaves for at least 6 days, and (iii) HuNoV disseminated similarly inside the central veins and leaf lamina, whereas surrogate viruses were more restricted to the central veins. Infectious TV, but not SaV, was detectable in all tissues, suggesting that TV has greater stability than SaV. HuNoV was visualized inside the roots’ vascular bundle and the leaf mesophyll of both plants. In conclusion, using surrogate viruses may underestimate the level of HuNoV internalization into edible leaves. The internalization of HuNoV through roots and cut leaves and the dissemination into various spinach and lettuce tissues raise concerns of internal contamination through irrigation and/or wash water.

IMPORTANCE Human noroviruses are the leading cause of foodborne outbreaks, with lettuce being implicated in the majority of outbreaks. The virus causes acute gastroenteritis in all age groups, with more severe symptoms in children, the elderly, and immunocompromised patients, contributing to over 200,000 deaths worldwide annually. The majority of deaths due to HuNoV occur in the developing world, where limited sanitation exists along with poor wastewater treatment facilities, resulting in the contamination of water resources that are often used for irrigation. Our study confirms the ability of lettuce and spinach to internalize HuNoV from contaminated water through the roots into the edible leaves. Since these leafy greens are consumed with minimal processing that targets only surface pathogens, the internalized HuNoV presents an added risk to consumers. Thus, preventive measures should be in place to limit the contamination of irrigation water. In addition, better processing technologies are needed to inactivate internalized viral pathogens.

CFIA

Recall details

Ottawa, June 2, 2018 – Loblaw Companies Limited is recalling certain no name brand Chicken Burgers from the marketplace due to possible Salmonella contamination. Consumers should not consume the recalled product described below.

CDC

What’s New?

FDA

X-Jow Pain Gel, and United Exchange Acne Shave Moisturizer, Acne Shave Shave Cream with Acne Shield, and Acne Shave Shave Kit to the retail level. The products may be contaminated with bacteria.

Topical administration of the products could result in potentially serious bacterial infections in immunocompromised individuals. To date, Shadow Holdings has not received any reports of adverse events related to this recall.

Herb-X Solutions X-Jow Pain Gel is used as an external analgesic, which is packaged in 4 oz. and 8 oz. bottles. The United Exchange Acne Shave Moisturizer and Acne Shave Shave Cream with Acne Shield are used as topical acne medications, and are packaged in 3.3 oz. and 5.1 oz. bottles respectively. The United Exchange Acne Shave Shave Kit contains potentially affected units of both the Acne Shave Moisturizer and the Acne Shave Shave Cream with Acne Shield.

Food Poisoning Bulletin

Three recalls have been issued for frozen broccoli cuts for possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination. No illnesses have been reported to date in connection with this issue.

The first is for Giant Food, LLC, recalling Private Brand Frozen Broccoli Cuts. The recalled product is sold in 16 ounce bags, with sell by date March 15, 2020, and UPC number 68826700926. The product sampled by the state of Connecticut tested positive for the pathogenic bacteria.

The second recall is for Giant/Martin’s Private Brand Frozen Broccoli Cuts, in 16 ounce packages. The sell by date is also March 15, 2020, and the UPC number is the same, 68826700926.

And the third recall is for Stop & Shop Frozen Broccoli Cuts. That product has the same UPC number, 68826700926, and the same sell by date of March 15, 2020.

These recalls are being issued out of an abundance of caution. If you purchased them, do not eat them, even if you are planning to heat the broccoli. Throw the packages away in a sealed container, or take them back to the place of purchase for a refund.

CFIA

Recall details

Ottawa, May 26, 2018 – Messinger Meats is recalling Italian Center Shop brand ground veal from the marketplace due to possible E. coli O157:H7 contamination. Consumers should not consume the recalled product described below.

Barf Blog

A community creche in Co Monaghan has been closed over an outbreak of shiga-toxin producing E.coli infection among children and staff.

Ballybay Community Creche was forced to close following the outbreak, to limit the spread of the infection. All children and staff members are due to be screened to see if they have picked up the infection.