The deadly Big Olaf ice cream Listeria monocytogenes outbreak has ended with 28 people sick in 13 states, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). That is an increase of three more cases since the last update on August 4, 2022. The new patients live in Florida, Massachusetts, Minnesota, and New York. The new states are Minnesota and Massachusetts. The case count by state is: Colorado (1), Florida (14), Georgia (1), Illinois (1), Kansas (1), Massachusetts (2), Minnesota (1), Nebraska (1), New Jersey (1), New York (4), and Pennsylvania (1). The patient age range is from less than one to 92 years. Illness onset dates range from January 24, 2021 to August 19, 2022. Of 28 ill persons, 27 were hospitalized. One person from Illinois died. Some of the illnesses … [Read more...]
What Do Inspection Reports for Big Olaf Creamery Reveal?
Last week, the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) revealed that Listeria had been found in 10 environmental swabs and samples from 16 different flavors of ice cream at Big Olaf Creamery's production plant in Sarasota, FL. The samples were collected after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced on July 2 that epidemiological evidence identified the ice cream as the source of a Listeria outbreak that has sickened 23 people over an 18-month period. One of the patients died and another suffered a miscarriage. Presented with that information, Big Olaf declined to issue a recall. Then a spokesperson for the company issued a statement that deemed the epidemiological information "speculative" and wondered why the company was being unfairly … [Read more...]
Big Olaf Who? Amid Outbreak Shops Ditch Ice Cream, Branding
For Big Olaf, the break-ups came quickly but not all at once. And not all of them quietly. In the two and half weeks since Big Olaf ice cream was linked to a deadly Listeria outbreak, licensed shops throughout Florida started switching to new suppliers. One owner has permanently changed the names of the two stores she operates. Although Listeria isn't as common as other foodborne pathogens. It is the most deadly. And it targets pregnant women, who can suffer a miscarriage or stillbirth if they develop an infection. "Five of the patients in this outbreak are women who contracted listeriosis while they were pregnant," said Eric Hageman, a Listeria lawyer, and Food Poisoning Bulletin Publisher. Hageman has extensive experience with Listeria lawsuits including one filed on behalf of a … [Read more...]
