The City of Milwaukee Health Department (MHD) has received a report of a confirmed case of Hepatitis A. The individual is an employee at Beans & Barley, a food establishment located on Milwaukee’s East Side. The individual took necessary precautions after developing symptoms and is fully cooperating with public health officials to minimize the risk of further transmission
Posted in Food Virus, Hepatitis A, Virus
The Hawai‘i Department of Health (DOH) has confirmed a case of hepatitis A infection in a food service employee at Hana Koa Brewing Company, located at 962 Kawaiaha‘o St., in Honolulu.
Anyone who has consumed any food or drink products from this establishment from Aug. 3-16, 2024, may have been exposed to the disease. Individuals who have not been vaccinated against hepatitis A should contact their health care provider if they develop symptoms and should mention their potential exposure to the disease. Early diagnosis guides appropriate care and can help stop further spread of the disease. Post-exposure prophylaxis can be offered to close contacts of infected individuals and is most effective when administered within two weeks of exposure to hepatitis A.
It is important to note that Hana Koa Brewing Company had no food safety violation that resulted in this case, but was merely a place where the infected employee was working.
Posted in Food Virus, Hepatitis A, Virus
June 4, 2024
Recall noticesExternal Link Disclaimer have been posted related to JBR’s expanded recall of certain frozen half-shell oysters.
JBR (KR-15-SP) Tongyeong, Republic of Korea (ROK) is voluntarily recalling all frozen half-shell oysters harvested between 11/26/2023 and 2/14/2024 to ensure public health and safety in the U.S. due to the possible contamination with norovirus. The recalled oysters were processed by JBR (KR-15-SP) in Tongyeong, ROK between 11/27/2023 and 2/15/2024 as frozen half-shell oysters and include the following lot numbers: B231126, B231128, B231129, B231130, B231201, B231202, B231204, B231205, B231206, B231209, B231225, B231226, B231227, B240102, B240103, B240104, B240109, B240111, B240114, B240201, B240203, B240204, and B240214.
Retailers should not serve or sell, and consumers should not eat frozen half-shell oysters that were harvested between 11/26/2023 and 2/14/2024, processed by JBR between 11/27/2023 and 2/15/2024, and distributed to restaurants and retailers in Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Jersey, and Utah. Additional distribution may have occurred, and the states are continuing to conduct trace forward investigations. The FDA is assisting with and coordinating interstate notification efforts as a result of the states’ investigations.
Posted in FDA, food contamination, food handler, Food Hazard, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Pathogen, Food Quality, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Safety Management, Food Safety Regulations, Food Testing, Food Virus, Food Virus Illness, Norovirus, Norovirus Oysters, Virus
Hepatitis E infection is typically caused by contaminated water or food. In July and August 2022, an outbreak of hepatitis E was reported in a nursing home in Zhejiang Province, China. Local authorities and workers took immediate actions to confirm the outbreak, investigated the sources of infection and routes of transmission, took measures to terminate the outbreak, and summarized the lessons learned. An epidemiological investigation was conducted on all individuals in the nursing home, including demographic information, clinical symptoms, history of dietary, water intake and contact. Stool and blood samples were collected from these populations for laboratory examinations. The hygiene environment of the nursing home was also investigated. A case-control study was conducted to identify the risk factors for this outbreak. Of the 722 subjects in the nursing home, 77 were diagnosed with hepatitis E, for an attack rate of 10.66 %. Among them, 18 (23.38 %, 18/77) individuals had symptoms such as jaundice, fever, and loss of appetite and were defined as the population with hepatitis E. The average age of people infected with hepatitis E virus (HEV) was 59.96 years and the attack rate of hepatitis E among women (12.02 %, 59/491) was greater than that among men (7.79 %, 18/231). The rate was the highest among caregivers (22.22 %, 32/144) and lowest among logistics personnel (6.25 %, 2/32); however, these differences were not statistically significant (P > 0.05). Laboratory sequencing results indicated that the genotype of this hepatitis E outbreak was 4d. A case-control study showed that consuming pig liver (odds ratio (OR) = 7.50; 95 % confidence interval [CI]: 3.84–16.14, P < 0.001) and consuming raw fruits and vegetables (OR = 5.92; 95 % CI: 1.74–37.13, P = 0.017) were risk factors for this outbreak of Hepatitis E. Moreover, a monitoring video showed that the canteen personnel did not separate raw and cooked foods, and pig livers were cooked for only 2 min and 10 s. Approximately 1 month after the outbreak, an emergency vaccination for HEV was administered. No new cases were reported after two long incubation periods (approximately 4 months). The outbreak of HEV genotype 4d was likely caused by consuming undercooked pig liver, resulting in an attack rate of 10.66 %. This was related to the rapid stir-frying cooking method and the hygiene habit of not separating raw and cooked foods.
May 24, 2024
Recall notices External Link Disclaimer have been posted related to JBR’s recall of certain frozen half-shell oysters due to illnesses in Utah associated with the consumption of such oysters.
JJBR (KR-15-SP) Tongyeong, Republic of Korea (ROK) is recalling frozen half-shell oysters with lot number B231227 because they may be contaminated with norovirus. The recalled oysters were harvested from ROK Designated Area No. 1 on 12/27/2023. They were processed by JBR (KR-15-SP) in Tongyeong, ROK on 12/28/2023 as frozen half-shell oysters, with lot number B231227. These oysters were distributed by Khee Trading, Inc. (Compton, CA), which is also recalling these oysters.
On 5/15/2024, JC Foods, Inc., of Salt Lake City, UT initiated a voluntary recall of frozen half shell oysters, lot number B231227, that had been distributed to their retail customers in Utah.
Retailers should not serve or sell, and consumers should not eat frozen half-shell oysters with lot number B231227 that were processed by JBR of ROK on 12/28/2023, and distributed to restaurants and retailers in California, Colorado, Nevada, New Jersey, and Utah. Additional distribution may have occurred, and the states are continuing to conduct trace forward investigations. The FDA is assisting with and coordinating interstate notification efforts as a result of the states’ investigations.
Posted in FDA, food recall, Food Virus, Norovirus, Norovirus Oysters, product recall, Recall, Virus
Viruses are the tiniest of microbes, but that doesn’t mean they should be underestimated as a significant threat. While they do require a host to multiply, they can still survive in the environment, including in food, until encountering a victim. Contaminated food can find its way into our refrigerators and meals, and as a result, viruses find their way into our bodies, often causing unpleasant illness or, at worst, death. But there are things that can be done to prevent that from happening. CODEX developed the Guidelines on the Application of General Principles of Food Hygiene to the Control of Viruses in Food in 2012. But since then, things have changed, and new scientific findings call for updating these guidelines. The Joint Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) / World Health Organization (WHO) Expert Meeting on Microbiological Risk Assessment (JEMRA) has come together to analyse the most recent science on the topic to inform the creation of new guidelines. JEMRA identified three main viruses that require special attention. Alone they cause millions of foodborne illness cases and tens of thousands of deaths annually.
The noroviruses and Hepatitis A virus take their usual place amongst the top viruses causing foodborne illnesses, but interestingly JEMRA identified a third virus that has emerged as a new threat. Check out the video to discover which virus we are referring to, and what are the main food sources of each of these viruses: https://youtu.be/XDKN_l8_ZCE?si=tyiiIMOhXCrKodwS
Posted in Food Virus, Food Virus Death, Hepatitis A, Hepatitis E, Norovirus, Virus
Norovirus and Hepatitis A Virus in frozen forest fruits from italy in Croatia, Italy, Romania, San Marino, Slovenia.
Posted in food contamination, food handler, Food Hazard, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Pathogen, Food Quality, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Safety Management, Food Safety Regulations, Food Testing, Food Virus, Hepatitis A, Norovirus, RASFF, Virus
Presence of Hepatitis A virus in strawberries from Morocco in Spain
Posted in food contamination, food handler, Food Hazard, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Pathogen, Food Quality, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Management, Food Safety Regulations, Food Virus, Hepatitis A, RASFF, Virus
Foodborne illnesses involving raw and minimally processed foods are often caused by human noroviruses (HuNoV) and hepatitis A virus (HAV). Since food is contaminated usually with small numbers of virions, these must be eluted from the food surface and then concentrated for detection. The objective of this study was to optimize an ultrafiltration (UF) concentration method for HAV and HuNoVs present on various fresh and frozen produce. The detection range of the optimized method and its applicability to different food matrices was compared to the reference method ISO 15216-1:2017. Strawberry, raspberry, blackberry, lettuce, and green onion (25 g) were contaminated with HAV, HuNoV GI.7 and HuNoV GII.4 and then recovered therefrom by elution. A commercial benchtop UF device was used for the concentration step. Viral RNA was extracted and detected by RT-qPCR. From fresh strawberries, recovery of HAV loaded at 104 genome copies per sample was 30 ± 13 %, elution time had no significant impact, and UF membrane with an 80–100 kDa cut-off in combination with Tris-glycine elution buffer at pH 9.5 was found optimal. At lower copy numbers on fresh strawberry, at least 1 log lower numbers of HuNoV were detectable by the UF method (103 vs 104 GII.4 copies/sample and 101 vs 103 GI.7 copies/sample), while HAV was detected at 101 genome copies/sample by both methods. Except on raspberry, the UF method was usually equivalent to the ISO method regardless of the virus tested. The UF method makes rapid viral concentration possible, while supporting the filtration of large volume of sample. With fewer steps and shorter analysis time than the ISO method, this method could be suitable for routine analysis of viruses throughout the food production and surveillance chain.
A hepatitis E-positive meat product appears to be behind most of the infections that occurred earlier this year in Finland.
The hepatitis E virus previously detected in sausages from a domestic manufacturer is similar to samples from most people affected by the outbreak at the start of 2024.
This was found during a strain comparison of viruses by the Finnish Food Authority (Ruokavirasto) and the National Institute of Health and Welfare (THL).
More than 120 people from different parts of Finland have fallen ill in the outbreak between January and March.
FoodWorld 