Two months ago a provider of school lunch meals in Canada, called The Lunch Lady, was identified as the source of a Salmonella outbreak that sickened 50 children.
Now the Ottawa outfit, which serves meals to 5,000 children in the Ottawa area, has been cited by Ottawa Public Health (OPH) officials for a food safety violation during a May 14 inspection. The facility did not keep foods cooled to a proper temperature of 40 degrees F or less. The problem had been corrected by the time a re-inspection was conducted the following day.
The Salmonella outbreak in March sickened 50 children ranging in age from 15 months to 18 years. The outbreak strain of bacteria was found in frozen uncooked ground beef and raw Halal chicken samples at the Lunch Lady facility. At least three of the victims were hospitalized.
After the outbreak, OPH announced that it would conduct a “comprehensive review of disinfection processes that will include interviews with food handlers and will provide food handler training courses to employees. When the franchise in question resumes full operations, OPH will conduct a full audit of hazardous food products and provide new requirements and recommendations for improvement if needed.”
