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Canada – Recall – Salmonella

Posted on June 13, 2013 by | Leave a comment

CFIAEurofins

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and Sunsprout Natural Foods are warning the public not to consume the Sunsprout and SproutsAlive brand alfalfa sprouts described below because they may be contaminated with Salmonella.

There have been no reported illnesses associated with the consumption of these products.

The manufacturer, Sunsprout Natural Foods, Brantford, Ontario, is voluntarily recalling the affected products from the marketplace.  The CFIA is monitoring the effectiveness of the recall.

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Posted in Bacteria, CFIA, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Microbiology, Pathogen, Recall, Salmonella

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USA- Hepatitis A in the News Again Worldwide

Posted on June 1, 2013 by | Leave a comment

Food Safety NewsVirusds

Patrons of the 800 Degrees Three Fires restaurant in Fort Wayne, Indiana may be at risk for hepatitis A infection, warned health officials Friday.

A worker at the restaurant tested positive for the virus, prompting the Allen County Health  Department to issue a public health advisory.

The Department is urging customers who ate or drank at the 800 Degrees Three Fires restaurant on Illinois Road between May 18 and May 26, 2013 to get the hepatitis A vaccine if they have not already had it.

Food Safety News

new outbreak of a hepatitis A strain rarely seen in the Western Hemisphere is believed to be associated with frozen mixed berries purchased from Costco is being investigated by multiple agencies, including the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.  At least 30 illnesses are involved, including  sicknesses in Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, and Nevada.

According to the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment, Townsend Farms Organic Antioxidant Blend frozen berries purchased from Costco appear to be the source of this outbreak.

The outbreak strain has  been identified by CDC as hepatitis A virus (HAV) genotype 1B, a strain that circulates in North Africa and the Middle East.  It was associated with last year’s outbreak in Europe involving frozen berries and another in British Columbia involving frozen berry blend with pomegranate seeds from Egypt.

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Posted in Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Technology, Food Testing, Food Virus, Hepatitis A, outbreak, Pathogen, Poisoning, Recall, Toxin, Virus

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New Zealand – Food Outlet 9 Cases Salmonella Infantis

Posted on May 28, 2013 by | Leave a comment

The New Zealand Herald Salmonella

An unnamed Northland food outlet is being investigated over nine confirmed cases of a rare type of Salmonella. In the past few weeks, Northland District Health Board has found a total of eleven cases of the food poisoning, which has been identified as salmonella infantis.

The Board’s medical officer Clair Mills says it was odd to have a cluster all at once and in a region where this type of bug is uncommon. She says nine of the eleven people had eaten at the same outlet in Whangarei.

“So then of course we look further at the premise and we take samples from food and we take stool samples from staff.”

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Posted in Bacteria, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Technology, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Illness, Microbiology, Pathogen, Salmonella

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Malaysia – Pupils Ill from Free Milk

Posted on May 23, 2013 by | 1 comment

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MELAKA: Eighteen pupils of a school in Telok Mas here were rushed to a health  clinic for suspected food poisoning after having consumed milk provided free  under a school milk programme.

The pupils, from standards one and three of Sekolah Kebangsaan Bukit Lintang,  complained of stomachache and vomitted after taking the milk at about 9 am and  were taken to the Umbai Health Clinic.

 

 

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Posted in Bacteria, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Hygiene, Illness, Laboratory, Microbiology, Pathogen, Poisoning

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China – 548 Students Food Poisoned

Posted on May 23, 2013 by | Leave a comment

Global Times

A total of 548 students from multiple elementary and high schools have been affected by food poisoning in Northwest China’s Qinghai Province, local authorities said Wednesday.

Dozens of students from three schools in the Hui and Tu Autonomous County of Datong started to show symptoms of food poisoning such as vomiting and diarrhea after eating lunch at their schools on Wednesday.

The source that caused the mass food poisoning has been discovered, Wang Yubo, mayor of Xining, the provincial capital, said.

Local authorities added that the remaining lunch has been sealed for tests.

An investigation into the cause of the accident is under way.

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Posted in Bacteria, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Hygiene, Illness, Laboratory, Microbiology, Pathogen, Poisoning, Recall

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USA – Salmonella Outbreak in Cucumbers

Posted on April 26, 2013 by | Leave a comment

Food Safety News

At least 73 people in 18 states have fallen ill with Salmonella Saintpaul infection thought to be connected to imported cucumbers, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Fourteen of the patients were hospitalized.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration placed the firms Daniel Cardenas Izabal and Miracle Greenhouse of Culiacán, Mexico on import alert on April 24. Those cucumbers are no longer believed to be on the market.

The number ill by state is as follows: Arizona (9), California (28), Colorado (1), Idaho (2), Illinois (3), Louisiana (1), Massachusetts (1), Maryland (1), Minnesota (8), Nevada (1), New Mexico (2), North Carolina (1), Ohio (1), Oregon (2), South Dakota (2), Texas (6), Virginia (2) and Wisconsin (2).

Illness onset dates ranged from January 12, 2013 to April 6, 2013. The ill range in age from less than 1 year to 80 years old, with a median age of 23. Sixty percent are female.

Cucumbers are historically not associated with foodborne illness outbreaks. During a massive German E. coli outbreak in the summer of 2011, cucumbers were briefly suspected as the source before the blame was ultimately blamed on fresh sprouts.

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Posted in Bacteria, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Microbiology, outbreak, Pathogen, Recall, Salmonella

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Central America – 4 Dead E.coli Outbreak

Posted on April 12, 2013 by | Leave a comment

Food Safety NewsEcoli Istock

At least 96 people have been hospitalized and 4 have died in an E. coli outbreak in Guatemala linked to fresh produce.

The outbreak, which has affected residents of the town of Santo Domingo Xenacoj in South Central Guatemala, is thought to have originated with contaminated fruits and vegetables, reported the Associated Press Thursday.

A male resident of the town reported that two of his children, ages 9 and 12, had died in the outbreak, according to AP.

Specimen taken from the four victims who died linked their deaths to E. coli, said health officials.

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Posted in Bacteria, E.coli, EHEC, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Hygiene, Illness, Methods, Microbiology, outbreak, Pathogen, STEC, VTECH

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UK – FSA – HPA – Cryptosporidum 2012 Outbreak

Posted on March 20, 2013 by | 2 comments

FSA763px-Cryptosporidium_parvum_01

The Health Protection Agency (HPA) today published findings of an investigation into an outbreak of Cryptosporidium infection that affected around 300 people in England and Scotland in May 2012.

The Food Standards Agency was part of the outbreak control team, led by the HPA, and gathered information on the production and distribution of salad vegetables to help identify the likely source of the outbreak.

The full HPA statement can be read via this HPA link

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Posted in Cryptosporidium, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Standards Agency, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, HPA, Microbiology, outbreak, Pathogen, Water

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RASFF Alerts – Aflatoxin – Ochratoxin – Spices – Nuts – Maize -Birdfeed

Posted on March 19, 2013 by | Leave a comment

RASFF – Ochratoxin A (38.6 µg/kg – ppb) in paprika powder from China in Germany

RASFF – Aflatoxins (B1 = 54.4; Tot. = 60.6 / B1 = 6.9; Tot. = 7.8 µg/kg – ppb) in almonds with shell from the United States in Germany

RASFF – Aflatoxins (B1 = 30.23 µg/kg – ppb) in maize grains from Italy

RASFF – Aflatoxins (B1 = 14.0; Tot. = 14.8 µg/kg – ppb) in groundnut kernels from India, via the Netherlands in Germany

RASFF – Aflatoxins (B1 = 36.7 /  µg/kg – ppb) in groundnuts for birdfeed from Argentina in GB

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Posted in Aflatoxin, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Microbiology, Moulds, Mycotoxin, Ochratoxin, Pathogen, Pet Food, RASFF, Recall

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UK -HPA -Burger Vans – Ecoli Contamination

Posted on March 14, 2013 by | Leave a comment

ITV News

HPA Report

Research from the Health Protection Agency (HPA) has revealed that food, water, chopping boards, cleaning cloths and security wristbands sampled from mobile and outdoor food vendors were contaminated with a range of bacteria including E.coli.

The bacteria, which originates from human or animal faeces is usually an indicator of either poor hygiene, undercooking or cross-contamination in the kitchen.

The events where samples were taken included 50 concerts or music festivals, 20 sports events, 39 carnivals, fetes and fairs and 44 ‘other’ events.

8% of food samples were of an unsatisfactory quality with a further 1% containing potentially hazardous levels of bacteria.

Water samples tested revealed that 27% contained unacceptable levels of coliform bacteria which can be found in the environment in soil, water and on plants and may also be a sign of faecal contamination.

E.coli and/or enterococci bacteria (of faecal origin) were found in 8%.

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Posted in Bacteria, E.coli, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Testing, Foodborne Illness, Hand Washing, HPA, Hygiene, Microbiology, Pathogen, Research

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