Category Archives: Uncategorized

RASFF-aflatoxins (B1 = 13.5; Tot. = 13.9 µg/kg – ppb) in pistachio kernels from China in Germany

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/rasff-window/portal/?event=notificationDetail&NOTIF_REFERENCE=2016.AVD

RASFF-aflatoxins (B1 = 29.7; Tot. = 30.5 µg/kg – ppb) in shelled whole nutmegs from India  in Germany

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/rasff-window/portal/?event=notificationDetail&NOTIF_REFERENCE=2016.AVG

RASFF-aflatoxins (B1 = 5.1; Tot. = 5.4 µg/kg – ppb) in corn from Serbia in Slovenia

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/rasff-window/portal/?event=notificationDetail&NOTIF_REFERENCE=2016.0748

RASFF-aflatoxins (Tot. = 30.5 µg/kg – ppb) in nutmeg from India in Germany

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/rasff-window/portal/?event=notificationDetail&NOTIF_REFERENCE=2016.AVK

RASFF-aflatoxins (B1 = 25; Tot. = 29 µg/kg – ppb) in dried figs from Turkey in France

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/rasff-window/portal/?event=notificationDetail&NOTIF_REFERENCE=2016.AVN

RASFF-aflatoxins (B1 = 19.29; Tot. = 35.22 µg/kg – ppb) in pistachios from Turkey

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/rasff-window/portal/?event=notificationDetail&NOTIF_REFERENCE=2016.AVP

RASFF-aflatoxins (Tot. = 19.9 µg/kg – ppb) in raw hazelnut kernels from Turkey in Greece

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/rasff-window/portal/?event=notificationDetail&NOTIF_REFERENCE=2016.AVW

RASFF-aflatoxins (Tot. = 5.9 µg/kg – ppb) in blanched groundnut kernels from China in the UK

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/rasff-window/portal/?event=notificationDetail&NOTIF_REFERENCE=2016.AVX

RASFF-aflatoxins (M1 = 0.07 µg/kg – ppb) in sweet gorgonzola cheese from Italy in Italy

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/rasff-window/portal/?event=notificationDetail&NOTIF_REFERENCE=2016.0776

RASFF-aflatoxins (B1 = 49; Tot. = 51 µg/dm²) in pistachio nuts in shell from the United States in France

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/rasff-window/portal/?event=notificationDetail&NOTIF_REFERENCE=2016.AVZ

RASFF-aflatoxins (B1 = 3.6; Tot. = 15.8 µg/kg – ppb) in hazelnut kernels from Turkey in France

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/rasff-window/portal/?event=notificationDetail&NOTIF_REFERENCE=2016.AVY

CFIA

http://inspection.gc.ca/about-the-cfia/newsroom/food-recall-warnings/complete-listing/2016-06-16/eng/1466116578406/1466116581154

Ottawa, June 16, 2016 – Atkins Et Frères Inc. is recalling Atkins & Frères brand Smoked Maple Syrup Salmon from the marketplace due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination. Consumers should not consume the recalled product described below.

The recalled product has been sold at the Atkins Et Frères Inc. retail store located in Mont-Louis, Quebec.

FDA

http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm507280.htm

HelloFresh of New York, N.Y. is recalling frozen peas due to notification from a supplier that the peas have the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. The peas were included in HelloFresh recipe kits delivered the week of June 11-15, 2016 and the weeks of March 12-25, 2016.

Currently, no illnesses or customer complaints have been reported to date, however, in an abundance of caution, the company has decided to conduct this voluntary recall. HelloFresh immediately informed their affected customers of the recall and advised them to discard the product

FDA –  Kashi Company is amending the date codes for Kashi GOLEAN® Honey Pecan Baklava Bars and Bear Naked® Soft Baked Granola, Cinnamon + Sunflower Butter related to its previously announced recall of snack bars and granola that contain ingredients made from sunflower seeds distributed by its supplier, SunOpta, that have the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes.

http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm507337.htm

FDA – The Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR) today announced it has expanded a recall of several products that may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes following supplier SunOpta’s expansion of its voluntary recall this week.

http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm507315.htm

FDA

http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm507326.htm

Essential Foods Inc. of Seattle, Washington is voluntarily recalling four flavors of Globespun Gourmet 8oz wraps because an ingredient (peas) has the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, 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 recalled Globespun Gourmet wraps were distributed in Washington and Oregon to grocery outlets and corporate cafeterias.

The products come in 8oz, plastic wrapped, ready to eat form. The affected products are the following flavors:

• Globespun Gourmet Thai UPC#3232800405
• Globespun Gourmet Coconut Curry UPC#3232800210
• Globespun Gourmet Tandoori- flavors of India UPC#3232800211
• Globespun Gourmet Dolma La- Tibetan potato UPC#3232800503

The products have a date stamp of 06 17, 06 20 and 06 24 on the bottom of the wrap.

No illnesses have been reported to date in connection with this problem.

FDA

http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm507309.htm

Crescent Specialty Foods, Inc. of Everett, WA is voluntarily recalling 6 oz. bags of Crescent Pistachio Raw, UPC Code: 8 95296 00103 5 because they have the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Healthy persons infected with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. In rare circumstances, infection with Salmonella can result in the organism getting into the bloodstream and producing more severe illnesses such as arterial infections (i.e., infected aneurysms), endocarditis and arthritis.

No illnesses have been reported to date.

PubMed

Abstract

Applied and Environmental Microbiology

ABSTRACT

The California Leafy Green Products Handler Marketing Agreement (LGMA) requires leafy green crops within 9 m of the edge of a flooded field not be harvested due to potential contamination (California Leafy Green Products Handler Marketing Board, Commodity Specific Flood Safety Guidelines for the Production and Harvest of Lettuce and Leafy Greens, 2012). Further, previously flooded soils should not be replanted for 60 days. In this study, the suitability of the LGMA metrics for farms in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States was evaluated. The upper end of a spinach bed (in Beltsville, MD) established on a −5% grade was flooded with water containing 6 log CFU/ml Escherichia coli to model a worst-case scenario of bacterial movement through soil. Escherichia coli prevalence in soil and on foliar tissue was determined by most probable number (MPN) analysis at distances up to 9 m from the edge of the flood for 63 days. While E. coli was quickly detected at the 9-m distance within 1 day in the spring trial and within 3 days in the fall trial, no E. coli was detected on plants outside the flood zone after 14 days. On day 63 for the two trials, E. coli populations in the flood zone soil were higher in the fall than in the spring. Regression analysis predicted that the time required for a 3-log MPN/g (dry weight) decrease in E. coli populations inside the flood zone was within the 60-day LGMA guideline in the spring but would require 90 days in the fall. Overall, data suggest that the current guidelines should be revised to include considerations of field and weather conditions that may promote bacterial movement and survival.

IMPORTANCE This study tracked the movement of Escherichia coli from floodwater across a horizontal plane of soil and the potential for the contamination of distant leafy green produce. The purpose of this study was to address the validity of the California Leafy Green Products Handler Marketing Agreement recommendations for the harvest of leafy green crops after a flooding event. These recommendations were based on the turning radius of farming equipment but did not take into consideration the potential subsurface movement of pathogens in the water through soil. This research shows that further considerations of field slope, temperature, and additional rainfall events may be necessary to provide appropriate guidelines to prevent the harvest of leafy green crops contaminated by enteric pathogens in floodwaters. This study may be used to provide a framework for comprehensive recommendations to growers for good harvesting practices after a flooding event.

Applied and Environmental Microbiology 

ABSTRACT

Escherichia coli O26 is the second most important enterohemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC) serogroup worldwide. Serogroup O26 strains are categorized mainly into two groups: enteropathogenic (EPEC) O26, carrying a locus of enterocyte effacement (LEE) and mostly causing mild diarrhea, and Shiga-toxigenic (STEC) O26, which carries the Shiga toxin (STX) gene (stx), responsible for more severe outcomes. stx-negative O26 strains can be further split into two groups. One O26 group differs significantly from O26 EHEC, while the other O26 EHEC-like group shows all the characteristics of EHEC O26 except production of STX. In order to determine the different populations of O26 E. coli present in U.S. cattle, we sequenced 42 O26:H11 strains isolated from feedlot cattle and compared them to 37 O26:H11 genomes available in GenBank. Phylogenetic analysis by whole-genome multilocus sequence typing (wgMLST) showed that O26:H11/H⁻ strains in U.S. cattle were highly diverse. Most strains were sequence type 29 (ST29). By wgMLST, two clear lineages could be distinguished among cattle strains. Lineage 1 consisted of O26:H11 EHEC-like strains (ST29) (4 strains) and O26:H11 EHEC strains (ST21) (2 strains), and lineage 2 (36 strains) consisted of O26:H11 EPEC strains (ST29). Overall, our analysis showed U.S. cattle carried pathogenic (ST21; stx₁⁺ ehxA⁺ toxB⁺) and also potentially pathogenic (ST29; ehxA⁺ toxB⁺) O26:H11 E. coli strains. Furthermore, in silico analysis showed that 70% of the cattle strains carried at least one antimicrobial resistance gene. Our results showed that whole-genome sequence analysis is a robust and valid approach to identify and genetically characterize E. coli O26:H11, which is of importance for food safety and public health.

IMPORTANCE Escherichia coli O26 is the second most important type of enterohemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC) worldwide. Serogroup O26 strains are categorized into two groups: enteropathogenic (EPEC) carrying LEE, causing mild diarrhea, and Shiga toxigenic (STEC) carrying the stx gene, responsible for more severe outcomes. However, there are currently problems in distinguishing one group from the other. Furthermore, several O26 stx-negative strains are consistently misidentified as either EHEC-like or EPEC. The use of whole-genome sequence (WGS) analysis of O26 strains from cattle in the United States (i) allowed identification of O26 strains present in U.S. cattle, (ii) determined O26 strain diversity, (iii) solved the misidentification problem, and (iv) screened for the presence of antimicrobial resistance and virulence genes in the strains. This study provided a framework showing how to easily and rapidly use WGS information to identify and genetically characterize E. coli O26:H11, which is important for food safety and public health.

Applied and Environmental Microbiology

ABSTRACT

Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) and enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC) strains may be responsible for food-borne infections in humans. Twenty-eight STEC and 75 EPEC strains previously isolated from French shellfish-harvesting areas and their watersheds and belonging to 68 distinguishable serotypes were characterized in this study. High-throughput real-time PCR was used to search for the presence of 75 E. coli virulence-associated gene targets, and genes encoding Shiga toxin (stx) and intimin (eae) were subtyped using PCR tests and DNA sequencing, respectively. The results showed a high level of diversity between strains, with 17 unique virulence gene profiles for STEC and 56 for EPEC. Seven STEC and 15 EPEC strains were found to display a large number or a particular combination of genetic markers of virulence and the presence of stx and/or eae variants, suggesting their potential pathogenicity for humans. Among these, an O26:H11 stx_1a eae-β1 strain was associated with a large number of virulence-associated genes (n = 47), including genes carried on the locus of enterocyte effacement (LEE) or other pathogenicity islands, such as OI-122, OI-71, OI-43/48, OI-50, OI-57, and the high-pathogenicity island (HPI). One O91:H21 STEC strain containing 4 stx variants (stx_1a, stx_2a, stx_2c, and stx_2d) was found to possess genes associated with pathogenicity islands OI-122, OI-43/48, and OI-15. Among EPEC strains harboring a large number of virulence genes (n, 34 to 50), eight belonged to serotype O26:H11, O103:H2, O103:H25, O145:H28, O157:H7, or O153:H2.

IMPORTANCE The species E. coli includes a wide variety of strains, some of which may be responsible for severe infections. This study, a molecular risk assessment study of E. coli strains isolated from the coastal environment, was conducted to evaluate the potential risk for shellfish consumers. This report describes the characterization of virulence gene profiles and stx/eae polymorphisms of E. coli isolates and clearly highlights the finding that the majority of strains isolated from coastal environment are potentially weakly pathogenic, while some are likely to be more pathogenic.