The FDA has released its final food safety guidance for producing sprouts. That ingredient has been linked to many outbreaks over the years, including a Salmonella outbreak earlier this year caused by Sun Sprouts alfalfa sprouts that sickened at least 63 people in eight states and hospitalized 10 of those patients. The 2023 Final Guidance updates and finalizes these sections of the original draft guidance that was issued in 2017: Cleaning and Sanitizing, Agricultural Water in Sprout Operations, Seeds for Sprouting, Environmental Monitoring, and Recordkeeping. Some sections of the 2017 document have been reissued and one new section is in the revised guidance. The update and new sections are on Equipment, Tools, and buildings, Sampling and Teting of Spent Sprout Irrigation Water, and … [Read more...]
Blue Ridge Rock Festival Outbreak Sickens People in Virginia
A Blue Ridge Rock Festival outbreak has sickened concertgoers in Virginia, according to the Virginia Department of Health and news reports. Public health officials are asking that anyone who attended that event, which was supposed to be held September 5 through September 10, 2023, to complete an online survey, even if they didn't get sick, to help them solve this outbreak. The Southside Health District of the Virginia Department of Health is leading the investigation. The festival was canceled two days early, allegedly because of weather conditions. It was held at the Virginia International Raceway located at 1245 Pine Tree Road in Alton, Virginia. 10 News got "hundreds of messages" about the festival from patrons who said that there were unsanitary and unsafe conditions at the … [Read more...]
Cultured Mussels From East River Shellfish Recalled For Pathogens
The FDA is warning restaurants and food retailers not to sell cultured mussels from East River Shellfish because they may be contaminated with E. coli and Salmonella bacteria. East River Shellfish is located in Glenfinnan, Prince Edward Island in Canada. The restaurants that received these mussels are located in the states of Illinois, Massachusetts, and New York. The cultured muscles are from the harvest location PE 4-C, and were harvested on August 14, 2023. They were shipped to customers on August 1, 2023, and distributed to retailers in those states mentioned. The product tag that was attached to original containers is: Contaminated mussels can cause illness if eaten raw or undercooked, especially in people who have chronic illnesses and compromised immune systems. Food … [Read more...]
Global Vitality Supplements Recalled For Possible E. coli
Two Global Vitality supplements are being recalled for possible E. coli contamination. This recall was posted on the FDA's Enforcement pages instead of the regular recall page, so there is no information about whether or not any illnesses have been reported. The recalling firm is Global Vitality Inc. of Chandler, Arizona. The recalled products were distributed to one consignee in California. Almost 3,000 of these bottles are included in this recall. No pictures of the recalled products are available. The recalled products include Food Research International Pro Kid Support Capsules. This product is packaged in glass bottles, with 90 capsules in each bottle, and 12 bottles per case. The item number on this product label is B6517, the lot number is 9237 and the product number is … [Read more...]
List of Lettuce Products Recalled For Possible Deer Feces
We have decided to compile this list of lettuce products that have been recalled for possible deer feces contamination because more and more products are being announced every day, and deer feces can carry dangerous pathogens. Some of these recalls are posted on the FDA's Enforcement Reports page, so most consumers will not see them. For the products posted on the FDA's recall notice page, no illnesses have been reported in connection with the consumption of these products. There is never any mention of illnesses on the Enforcement Page recalls. Deer feces can contain the pathogens Salmonella, E. coli, Campylobacter, Listeria monocytogenes, and Giardia bacteria that can cause serious illness. The droppings can also carry the prions that cause chronic wasting disease, an illness … [Read more...]
Who is Most Susceptible to Food Poisoning Complications?
Who is most susceptible to food poisoning complications? In many recall notices and all notice of outbreaks, we mention that people who belong to certain groups should be very careful about foods contaminated with pathogens. The FDA calls these groups "at risk." These groups are more susceptible for several reasons. In some, their immune systems may be compromised by age or disease. In others, an illness means their body is less able to fight infections. Of the estimated 48,000,000 food poisoning infections that occur every year in the United States, about 128,000 people are hospitalized and there are 3,000 deaths. People who are in these at risk groups are at greater risk for developing serious complications. Pregnant Women During pregnancy, the mother's immune system is … [Read more...]
Minnesota Raw Milk Salmonella Outbreak Sickens Five Children
A Minnesota raw milk Salmonella outbreak has sickened five children in the Twin Cities Metro area, according to the Minnesota Department of Health. The pathogen sickening the children is Salmonella Typhimurium. One child was infected with two types of pathogenic E. coli in addition to the Salmonella. The families of two of the children have confirmed that they drank unpasteurized milk. Officials could not get information from the remaining families, but the bacteria from the cases is identical through lab analysis, which indicates the infections came from the same source. The patient age range is from 3 months to 10 years. The children got sick between the end of June and early July 2023. One child was hospitalized. Raw milk is milk that has not been heated to kill harmful … [Read more...]
Green Garden Mint Recalled in Canada for Generic E. coli
Green Garden Mint is being recalled in Canada because it may be contaminated with generic E. coli. The presence of that pathogen can indicate fecal contamination. The recall notice did not state whether or not any illnesses have been reported to the company to date in connection with the consumption of this product. The recalling firm is Green Garden. The recalled product is Green Garden Mint that is packaged in eight pound containers. There is no UPC number for this product, and there are no codes on the item. It was sold in the provinces of Ontario, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick at the retail level. Generic E. coli is found in the intestinal tract of human and animals. If it is found in ready to eat foods that product should not be consumed. Studies have shown that including … [Read more...]
2021 Chipotle and Panera Romaine E. coli Outbreak
In 2021, health departments in Washington and Minnesota did something that doesn't happen very often. They solved an E. coli outbreak linked to leafy greens. "It is rare to be able to identify the outbreak vehicle for commercially distributed food like romaine lettuce (much less link back to a farm source) with only four laboratory-confirmed cases who consumed the romaine lettuce at four different restaurant locations in two states," Doug Schultz, an information officer at the Minnesota Department of Health told Food Poisoning Bulletin. The outbreak was never announced because, by the time investigators identified the specific grower, there was no ongoing risk to the public, he said. Stream of Unsolved Outbreaks Leafy greens recently overtook ground beef to become the leading … [Read more...]
Triple Wash Your Veggies, WVU Extension Advises
Triple wash your veggies, researchers at West Virginia University Extension advises consumers, to reduce bacterial counts and avoid food poisoning. Researcher Cangliang Shen, associate professor of human nutrition and foods at the university, has studied the microbial safety of farmers market produce, which revealed a risk for microbial contamination from pathogens such as E. coli, Salmonella, and Listeria monocytogenes. Outbreaks linked to fresh produce are very common; in fact, they are more common than people think. For instance, there were 40 outbreaks linked to leafy greens from 2009 to 2018. And last year a Salmonella outbreak linked to cantaloupe sickened at least 88 people in 12 states. A 2015 study conducted by Shen and graduate students KaWang Li and Wentao Jiang at the … [Read more...]
