King County Public Heath is investigating an outbreak of gastroenteritis with abdominal cramps and diarrhea associated with Rancho Bravo Tacos at 1001 East Pine Street on Capitol Hill in Seattle, Washington. Four people from one party got sick soon after eating food at the restaurant on April 22, 2017. None of the patients was hospitalized.
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CDC Photo
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (Public Health) warns against consuming local deer- antler tea due to botulism risk. Public Health has recently identified one confirmed and one suspected case of botulism occurring in adults. Preliminary investigation suggests that these cases may be associated with the consumption of a deer-antler tea product (photos attached) that was acquired during the month of March. Pending further investigation, Public Health recommends that all persons who purchased product similar to this (i.e., deer-antler tea provided in a sealed pouch similar to the attached photographs) during the month of March, immediately dispose of it.
Public Health will provide more information as it becomes available.
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NHS Lanarkshire’s Department of Public Health along with North Lanarkshire Council Environmental Health and other agencies are investigating nine confirmed and nine suspected cases of hepatitis A in North Lanarkshire.
Patients have either been discharged or are currently in Monklands Hospital. All are well and responding to treatment.
Initial investigations indicate that there could be a possible link to the JB Christie bakery in Airdrie and as a precaution, and in line with public health guidance, environmental health and public health staff are working with the bakery to carry out further investigations.
Dr Josephine Pravinkumar, NHS Lanarkshire consultant in Public Health Medicine said: “Our initial investigations have indicated that there may be a link between these cases and the bakery.
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A multiyear interagency Listeria monocytogenes Market Basket Survey was undertaken for selected refrigerated ready-to-eat foods purchased at retail in four FoodNet sites in the United States. Food samples from 16 food categories in six broad groups (seafood, produce, dairy, meat, eggs, and combination foods) were collected weekly at large national chain supermarkets and independent grocery stores in California, Maryland, Connecticut, and Georgia for 100 weeks between December 2010 and March 2013. Of the 27,389 total samples, 116 samples tested positive by the BAX PCR system for L. monocytogenes, and the pathogen was isolated and confirmed for 102 samples. Among the 16 food categories, the proportion of positive samples (i.e., without considering clustering effects) based on recovery of a viable isolate of L. monocytogenes ranged from 0.00% (95% confidence interval: 0.00, 0.18) for the category of soft-ripened and semisoft cheese to 1.07% (0.63, 1.68) for raw cut vegetables. Among the 571 samples that tested positive for Listeria-like organisms, the proportion of positive samples ranged from 0.79% (0.45, 1.28) for soft-ripened and semisoft cheese to 4.76% (2.80, 7.51) for fresh crab meat or sushi. Across all 16 categories, L. monocytogenes contamination was significantly associated with the four states (P < 0.05) but not with the packaging location (prepackaged by the manufacturer versus made and/or packaged in the store), the type of store (national chain versus independent), or the season. Among the 102 samples positive for L. monocytogenes, levels ranged from <0.036 most probable number per g to 6.1 log CFU/g. For delicatessen (deli) meats, smoked seafood, seafood salads, soft-ripened and semisoft cheeses, and deli-type salads without meat, the percentage of positive samples was significantly lower (P < 0.001) in this survey than that reported a decade ago based on comparable surveys in the United States. Use of mixed logistic regression models to address clustering effects with regard to the stores revealed that L. monocytogenes prevalence ranged from 0.11% (0.03, 0.34) for sprouts (prepackaged) to 1.01% (0.58, 1.74) for raw cut vegetables (prepackaged).
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The lethal and sublethal effect of a dielectric barrier discharge atmospheric cold plasma on Staphylococcus aureus were investigated by nonselective and selective media. The inactivation level and sublethally injured proportions of S. aureus cells by dielectric barrier discharge atmospheric cold plasma depended on the treatment times (0, 5, 15, and 45 s), applied input powers (40, 50, and 60 W), and gap distances (2, 4, and 6 mm). Under weak conditions (e.g., 5 s, 40 W, and 6 mm), the occurrence of inactivation and sublethal injury of S. aureus showed a relatively low level. Strong treatment (e.g., 45 s, 60 W, and 2 mm) resulted in highly an inactivated rate, but with small fractions of sublethally injured S. aureus cells. Mild action of cold plasma induced both a large inactivation and a sublethal injury of S. aureus. Therefore, it is significant to optimize the processing of cold plasma sterilization in practice to ensure food safety.
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Ottawa, April 28, 2017 – The food recall warning issued on April 25, 2017 has been updated to include additional product information. This additional information was identified during the Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s (CFIA) food safety investigation.
Mom’s Pantry is recalling Mom’s Pantry / Jim & Leonie brand 3″ Unsweetened Tart Shells and 9″ Unbaked Pie Lids from the marketplace due to possible E. coli O121 contamination. Consumers should not consume the recalled products described below.
| Brand Name | Common Name | Size | Code(s) on Product | UPC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mom’s Pantry / Jim & Leonie | 3″ Unsweetened Tart Shells | 90 x 19 g | All units sold from December 1, 2016 up to and including April 28, 2017 | None |
| Mom’s Pantry / Jim & Leonie | 9″ Unbaked Pie Lids | 15 x 142 g | All units sold from March 15, 2017 up to and including April 28, 2017 | None |
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| Product name and Description | *Updated on 28 April 2017
Product name: Traditional Smoked Scottish Salmon |
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| Reason For Issuing Alert |
– The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) collected the smoked salmon sample from YATA Supermarket in Tai Po for testing under its routine Food Surveillance Programme. The test result showed the presence of Listeria monocytogenes in 25 grams of the sample, exceeding the standard of the Microbiological Guidelines for Food which states that Listeria monocytogenes should not be detected in 25 grams of food. – Listeria monocytogenes can be easily destroyed by cooking but can survive and multiply at refrigerator temperatures. Most healthy individuals do not develop symptoms or only have mild symptoms like fever, muscle pain, headache, nausea, vomiting or diarrhoea when infected. However, severe complications such as septicemia, meningitis or even death may occur in newborns, the elderly and those with a weaker immune system. Although infected pregnant women may just experience mild symptoms generally, the infection of Listeria monocytogenes may cause miscarriage, infant death, preterm birth, or severe infection in newborns. *Updated on 28 April 2017 – CFS has conducted further investigation and the importer concerned confirmed that there was no processing of the concerned product in Hong Kong after it was imported, and the concerned product had also been distributed to other retailers. The CFS, for the sake of prudence, has banned the import and sale within Hong Kong of the kind of prepackaged smoked salmon immediately, regardless of batches. |
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| Action Taken by the Centre for Food Safety |
– The CFS has informed the vendor of the test result and instructed it to stop sale and remove from shelves the affected batch of the product, and initiate a recall. – The CFS will inform the trade, continue to follow up on the case and take appropriate action including tracing the source and distribution of the affected food item to safeguard food safety and public health. *Updated on 28 April 2017 – CFS has banned the import and sale within Hong Kong of the kind of prepackaged smoked salmon immediately, regardless of batches. The CFS has also instructed the importer concerned to stop sale, remove from shelves, and initiate a recall of the product in question. – The CFS has informed the British authorities concerned of the import ban. It will also alert the trade, continue to follow up on the case and take appropriate action to safeguard food safety and public health. |
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| Advice to the Trade |
– Stop using or selling the products concerned immediately. | |
| Advice to Consumers | – Stop consuming the affected product. | |
| Further Information | l The CFS press release (26 April 2017)
l The CFS press release (27 April 2017) *Updated on 28 April 2017 – For enquiries about the recall, members of the public may call the importer’s hotline at 3678 0822 / 3678 0210 during office hours. |
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Did you know that 1 in 10 people fall ill from foodborne disease every year? And that 420,000 deaths every year are directly attributed to foodborne diseases? The really sad thing is that foodborne diseases in the food chain are preventable. This is the subject of the recent Food Standards Modernization Act (FSMA) in the USA which is much in focus within the food and beverage industry right now.
A new Food Safety Infographic from Autoscribe Informatics highlights the problems caused by foodborne illness and how we can keep food safe in the entire food chain using Environmental Monitoring solutions.
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MUMBAI: A civic public health department’s survey has found that ice served at hundreds of hawkers and restaurants across the city is contaminated with E.coli microbes.
“We conducted a survey in March and April and found that 67% and 72% ice samples respectively were contaminated,” said Dr Padmaja Keskar, civic executive health officer. The only silver lining is that a similar survey conducted just before last year’s monsoon found that 92% of the ice samples were contaminated.
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Phoenix Food, LLC (the company) of Canton, Texas announced it is voluntarily recalling select Dip Trio Mixes due to the potential presence of Salmonella in the seasoning packet.
This voluntary recall is the direct result of a supplier’s recent recall of jalapeno powder that could contain Salmonella. Although no Salmonella was found in the jalapeno powder supplied to Phoenix Food, the company has decided to recall these products out of an abundance of caution.
The Dip Trio Mix contains a dry mix packaged in a plastic barrier bag labeled “Jalapeno Bacon”. The bag is inserted into a red box entitled Dip Trio Mix. Specific lot codes: K110420161, K111220161 & K111120161, located on the top of the box, are the products affected by this recall. See image of box below.
No reported illnesses or instances have been reported to the company to date. The company’s Safe Quality Food Level 2 on-going food safety processes showed no presence of Salmonella. In addition, outside lab testing of all lot codes shipped from the company as well as multiple tests performed on equipment and food contact services in the plant also showed no presence of Salmonella.
The Dip Trio Mixes were distributed nationwide under the Homemade Gourmet Brand through distributors and on-line sales.
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