Raw milk is the source of a Campylobacter outbreak that sickened 22 members of the Durand High School football team, hospitalized eight people, forced the cancelation of two football games and prompted 150 high school and middle school students to miss classes to avoid becoming ill. The milk was served at a September 18 potluck.
Health officials from the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS), the Wisconsin State Lab of Hygiene (WSLH), the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) and the Pepin County Health Department worked together on an investigation of the outbreak. Tests identified the DNA”fingerprint” of the Campylobactor jejuni bacteria that sickened members of the team and coaching staff and found that it was a genetic match to Campylobacter bacteria found on the farm that supplied the milk.
Campylobacter bacteria cause an infection called campylobacteriosis. Symptoms include diarrhea, which is sometimes bloody, abdominal cramping, fever, nausea and vomiting. Campylobacter is transmitted when food contaminated by animal feces is consumed.
Young people are especially vulnerable to bacteria that cause food poisoning. Because raw milk can harbor dangerous pathogens, public health officials recommend that children only consume pasteurized milk.
