Ochratoxin A in organic oats from Lithuania in Germany
Mycotoxins in curry powder in Switzerland
Listeria monocytogenes in grill cheese from Austria in Germany
Listeria in meat preparation from the Netherlands in Belgium
Listeria monocytogenes (< 10 CFU/g) in chilled smoked trout from Poland in France
Aflatoxins in pistachios without shells from Iran via Turkey in Italy
Aflatoxins in watermelon seeds from the Netherlands in Germany
Aflatoxins in pistachios from Iran in Germany
Aflatoxin in groundnuts kernels from Argentina in the Netherlands
Aflatoxins in chia seeds from Uganda, via Germany in France and Belgium
Aflatoxines in groundnuts from Cameroon in Belgium and France
Aflatoxins in red watermelon seeds from Lebanon in Austria, Germany, Iceland and UK
Salmonella in Brazilian black pepper in the Netherlands
Salmonella in tahini and halva from Syria in Sweden
Salmonella in chilled pieces of turkey from Poland in Poland and the Netherlands
Salmonella Takoradi in frozen basil from Belgium in Finland
S. Saintpaul, S. Morehead and S. Freetown in black pepper from Brazil in Germany
Salmonella spp in chilled meat from Belgium in Poland
Salmonella enterica ser. Enteritidis (in 1 out of 5 samples /25g) in frozen poultry meat from Poland in Belgium
Salmonella spp. in chicken neck skins from Poland in Poland, France, Netherlands and UK
Salmonella Enteritidis in poultry meat from Poland in the Democratic Republic of Congo
Salmonella Enteritidis in poultry meat from Poland in the Democratic Republic of Congo
Salmonella enterica ser. Newport in psyllium fibres from India, via Germany in Finland
Salmonella Enteritidis in chilled chicken meat from Poland in Poland, Germany and France
Salmonella enterica ser. Enteritidis in chilled chicken meat from Poland in Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Greece, Czech Republic, Netherlands and Romania
Salmonella enteritidis in chicken products from Poland in France, UK and the Netherlands
Salmonella in chilled Merguez sausage from Belgium in the Netherlands
Salmonella Enteritidis in eggs (found on eggshells) from Poland in Germany
Salmonella Infantis in chicken from Poland in France, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Oman, Poland and Slovakia
Salmonella Enteritidis in fresh chicken meat from Poland in Germany, Netherlands, Poland and UK
S. Kiambu and S. Minnesota in black pepper from Brazil in Germany
Carcasses and elements of poultry meat – salmonella infantis from Poland in Latvia, Lithuania, Germany, France, Czech Republic, Italy, Netherlands and Poland
Posted in food contamination, Food Hazard, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Pathogen, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Polish Chicken Salmonella, RASFF, Salmonella, Salmonella in Black Pepper, Salmonella in Chicken, Salmonella in Eggs, Salmonella Poland
Ever wonder why the number of illnesses in a foodborne outbreak can increase for weeks, even after the contaminated food is off the market?
A series of events happen before public health officials can report that a case of illness is linked to an outbreak. Each event takes a certain amount of time. This time is known as the “reporting lag” or “lag window” of an outbreak. It is usually 3–4 weeks. For illnesses caused by some bacteria, such as Listeria, it may be longer. Public health officials work to speed up this process when possible.
The steps below outline what typically happens from the day someone eats a contaminated food to the day their illness is linked to a multistate foodborne outbreak investigated by CDC.*
| Bacteria | Typical start of symptoms |
|---|---|
| Campylobacter | 2–5 days |
| E. coli | 3–4 days |
| Listeria | 1–4 weeks |
| Salmonella | 6 hours–6 days |
| Vibrio | 1-2 days |
Find out when some common food poisoning symptoms are severe enough to need medical attention. See the list
CDC and public health laboratories use a technology called whole genome sequencing (WGS) to generate DNA fingerprints of bacteria causing illness. When bacteria have nearly identical DNA fingerprints, we consider them “genetically closely related.” Illnesses caused by bacteria that are genetically closely related are more likely to have a common source, such as a contaminated food. An outbreak is an event in which a group of people get similar illnesses from a common source. Disease detectives investigate outbreaks to find out what is making people sick.
Find out how CDC uses WGS to detect and solve foodborne outbreaks.
*Most cases of illness, even those caused by common foodborne germs, are not linked to a foodborne outbreak. This can happen for many reasons. A major reason is that most illnesses are not part of an outbreak. Another reason is that germs that cause foodborne illness can also be spread in other ways, such as by water or directly from one person to another. Also, if an illness is diagnosed by a culture-independent diagnostic test, that case may not be linked to an outbreak because these tests do not provide the information needed to link it to an outbreak. In addition, many people do not seek medical care for foodborne illnesses, so their illnesses cannot be diagnosed or reported to public health officials.
Posted in food bourne outbreak, food contamination, food handler, Food Hazard, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Pathogen, Food Poisoning, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Temperature Abuse, Food Testing, foodborne outbreak, foodbourne outbreak, outbreak, Pathogen, pathogenic, Research, Uncategorized
The Food Standards Agency’s chief scientific advisor has said potential trends in foodborne infections must be monitored after a decline during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Robin May said data from the past 12 months shows a substantial drop in foodborne disease rates for four major pathogens but this is likely because of fewer patients going to general practioners’ (GP) offices and reduced diagnostic testing during the coronavirus pandemic.
May said understanding the true level of foodborne disease in 2020 and early 2021 will require detailed analysis, work which the FSA has started.
“An accurate benchmark will be invaluable as we start to monitor post-COVID trends and establish, for instance, whether changes in domestic and commercial hygiene practices may ultimately lead to a lasting change in foodborne disease rates,” he said.
“In terms of foodborne disease reporting, the bottom line is we don’t know what the data really looked like for last year because so much of our data comes from things like GP reporting, which people were not doing.
Ultraviolet (UV-C) light-emitting diode (LED) light at a wavelength of 250–280 nm was used to disinfect skinless chicken breast (CB), stainless steel (SS) and high-density polyethylene (HD) inoculated with Salmonella enterica. Irradiances of 2 mW/cm2 (50%) or 4 mW/cm2 (100%) were used to treat samples at different exposure times. Chicken samples had the lowest Salmonella reduction with 1.02 and 1.78 Log CFU/cm2 (p ≤ 0.05) after 60 and 900 s, respectively at 50% irradiance. Higher reductions on CB were obtained with 100% illumination after 900 s (>3.0 Log CFU/cm2). Salmonella on SS was reduced by 1.97 and 3.48 Log CFU/cm2 after 60 s of treatment with 50% and 100% irradiance, respectively. HD showed a lower decrease of Salmonella, but still statistically significant (p ≤ 0.05), with 1.25 and 1.77 Log CFU/cm2 destruction for 50 and 100% irradiance after 60 s, respectively. Longer exposure times of HD to UV-C yielded up to 99.999% (5.0 Log CFU/cm2) reduction of Salmonella with both irradiance levels. While UV-C LED treatment was found effective to control Salmonella on chicken and food contact surfaces, we propose three mechanisms contributing to reduced efficacy of disinfection: bacterial aggregation, harboring in food and work surface pores and light absorption by fluids associated with CB. View Full-Text
Tilapia have been linked to an outbreak of Streptococcus, which affected 146 people in Singapore, prompting the FAO to issue a “risk profile report” to raise awareness of the threat.
In 2015, around 146 people became ill after eating a traditional raw freshwater fish dish in Singapore, with several people eventually having to have limbs amputated. It turns out that they had developed blood poisoning linked to a bacterium called Streptococcus agalactiae, also called Group B Streptococcus (SBS). The specific strain responsible for the outbreak was a unique sequence type 283 (ST283). A four-page factsheet, Invasive disease linked to raw freshwater fish, has just been made available, as has a more comprehensive Risk profile – Group B Streptococcus (GBS) – Streptococcus agalactiae sequence type (ST) 283 in freshwater fish.
Dr Tim Barkham, an associate professor at Tan Tock Seng Hospital in Singapore, first identified the human health risk. “Many microbiologists were surprised, as invasive GBS disease in people has not been known to be foodborne previously,” he said.
Posted in Faecal Streptpcocci, food bourne outbreak, food contamination, Food Hazard, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Pathogen, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, foodborne outbreak, foodbourne outbreak, outbreak
