Fond du Lac Reservation tribal leaders began to investigate an outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 during mid-summer 2014 with assistance from the Minnesota Department of Health. By August 22, the investigation found that 63 people had been infected by two closely knit molecular patterns of the pathogen, including nine people who were hospitalized and 21 who sought care at a clinic. Interviews of more than 130 attendees of an Elder Picnic pointed to potato salad as a significant exposure at the event and testing later confirmed the outbreak strain of E. coli in the potato salad. Jim-N-Jo's Northland Katering out of Cloquet, Minnesota, was identified as the food provider. The company also catered a wedding on the reservation where additional people were sickened by toxic E. coli. A report … [Read more...]
Fond du Lac E. coli O157:H7 Outbreak from Jim-N-Jos Northland Katering
The Minnesota Department of Health has released a report on the E. coli O157:H7 outbreak that sickened people at the picnic for Elders of the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa and other events. The picnic was held on July 11, 2014 and was catered by Jim-N-Jo's Northland Katering. The caterer is licensed by the University of Minnesota and operated out of the Cloquet Forestry Center. Jim-N-Jo's catered at least 12 events in the Upper Midwest from July 5 to July 17, 2014. Five of those events resulted in illness and 57 patients met the outbreak criteria. The Minnesota Department of Agriculture, Minnesota Department of Environmental Health, and MDH Tribal Relations conducted an investigation into this outbreak. They interviewed 199 individuals from seven catered events. Of these, … [Read more...]
Fond du Lac E. coli Outbreak Case Count Reaches 22
According to the Pioneer Press, at least 22 people have been sickened with E. coli O157 on the Fond du Lac Reservation in northern Minnesota. The Band of Lake Superior Chippewa posted news of the outbreak on Juy 21, 2014. There is no new information about this outbreak at the Minnesota Department of Health web site. This is not the same strain of E. coli associated with Applebee's restaurants that has sickened more than a dozen people in Minnesota. That is a rare strain of E. coli O111 that has not been seen in the United States until now. Food poisoning cases do increase in the summer months, as more people eat fresh produce that may be contaminated with the pathogenic bacteria, and more cook outdoors. Outdoor cooking must follow special food safety rules, including cooking chicken … [Read more...]
E. coli Outbreak on Fond du Lac Reservation
An E. coli outbreak has sickened between six and 12 members of the Fond du Lac band of Lake Superior Chippewa on the reservation in northeastern MN near Cloquet, about 20 miles west of Duluth. Health authorities say they have not yet determined the food source of the outbreak or the specific bacterial strain. The Minnesota Department of Health is currently investigating an E.coli O111 outbreak in the Twin Cities area. That outbreak has sickened at least 15 people, some of whom ate at Applebee's restaurants between June 23 and June 29 before becoming ill. Four of those sickened in the Twin Cities area were hospitalized and are recovering. Labs do not normally test for E. coli O111, a less common strain of the bacteria, so some cases may not yet be diagnosed. Symptoms of an E. coli … [Read more...]
