The Journal of Pediatrics has published a study on the 2017 soy nut butter E. coli O157:H7 outbreak that sickened 32 people, mostly children, in 12 states. That outbreak was linked to I.M. Healthy SoyNut Butter, which is used as a substitute for peanut butter in many daycare settings and schools around the country. Twelve of the patients in this outbreak were hospitalized. Twenty-six of these illnesses occurred in children under the age of 18. Eight of these children developed hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a type of kidney failure that is a complication of a Shiga toxin-producing E. coli infection. One adult also developed that complication. Twenty-five of the case patients ate the same brand of soy nut butter or attended schools or daycare centers that served the product. The … [Read more...]
Top 10 Food Poisoning Outbreaks of 2017: Number 6 I.M. Healthy SoyNut Butter E. coli O157:H7 HUS Outbreak
The E. coli O157:H7 - HUS outbreak linked to recalled I.M. Healthy SoyNut Butter products was the sixth largest food poisoning outbreak of 2017. That outbreak sickened 32 people in 12 states, many of them children. Twelve people were hospitalized, and nine developed hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a type of kidney failure. Eighty-one percent of patients in this outbreak were under the age of 18, mostly because those products were used as peanut butter substitutes in schools and daycare centers. The median patient age was 9. No deaths were reported in this outbreak. The patients lived in Washington state, Oregon, California, Arizona, Florida, Missouri, Illinois, Wisconsin, Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey, and Massachusetts. Illness onset dates ranged from January 4, 2017 to April … [Read more...]
I.M. Healthy SoyNut Butter E. coli O157:H7 HUS Outbreak Over
The E. coli O157:H7-HUS outbreak linked to recalled I.M. Healthy SoyNut Butter products is over, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), after sickening 32 people in 12 states. Twelve people were hospitalized in this outbreak, and nine developed hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a type of kidney failure. Public health officials think that people may still have these recalled products in their home, so illnesses may "continue for some time." The CDC recommends that consumers do not eat, and childcare centers, schools, and other institutions do not serve, any of the recalled products, even if part of the product was consumed and no one got sick. Twenty-six, or 81%, of the patients in this outbreak were under the age of 18. The products were served at … [Read more...]
I.M. Healthy Lawsuit: E. coli-HUS Lawyer Says Zero Tolerance for Contamination
According to attorney Fred Pritzker, whose law firm has filed a lawsuit alleging E. coli from an I.M. Healthy product, parents should contact a doctor if their children have eaten an I.M. Healthy product and have any of the following symptoms within 10 days after consumption: diarrhea, especially if it is bloody; severe stomach cramping; vomiting; and/or decreased urine output, which is a sign of kidney failure from an E. coli complication called hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). "Talk to your doctor about a stool test. It is usually the only way to prove your child has E. coli poisoning," says attorney Pritzker, who has a national practice representing people sickened by contaminated food. I.M. Healthy products, recalled in March 2017, have been linked to an outbreak of E. coli … [Read more...]
Rep. DeLauro Applauds FDA for Closing Dixie Dew Products
Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) is applauding the FDA for closing the Dixie Dew Products processing plant, which is the contract manufacturer for The SoyNut Butter Company. I.M. Healthy SoyNut Butter products, made by The SoyNut Butter Company, are linked to an E. coli O157:H7 HUS outbreak that has sickened at least 29 people in 12 states. The FDA's investigations at the plant in Erlanger, Kentucky revealed that food safety violations at that facility go back at least 15 years. Some violations included broken temperature control equipment, an infestation of flies and larva, production machines that have not been cleaned since 2015, and no hot water in hand-washing sinks for the last two years. DeLauro said in a statement, "Dixie Dew’s gross negligence is sickening dozens of … [Read more...]
FDA Issues Details of the Dixie Dew Products Facility Shut Down
The FDA has suspended the food facility registration of Dixie Dew Products, Inc. On March 28, 2017, the FDA used authorities granted under the 2011 FDA Food Safety Modernization Act to suspend that registration because products manufactured in that facility may be contaminated. Soy nut butter manufactured by Dixie Dew has been implicated in the I.M. Healthy SoyNut Butter E. coli O157:H7 HUS outbreak that has sickened at least 29 people in 12 states. The FDA's decision was prompted by that E. coli O157:H7 outbreak and the findings of the FDA's March 2017 inspection of Dixie Dew, which "identified insanitary conditions that could lead to contamination with E. coli O157:H7 in finished products." No food can leave the Dixie Dew facility for sale or distribution while the food facility … [Read more...]
FDA Shuts Down Dixie Dew Products after E. coli O157:H7 HUS Outbreak
The E. coli O157:H7 outbreak linked to recalled I.M. Healthy SoyNut Butter products has sickened 29 people in 12 states, some very seriously. Nine of those people have developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, a type of kidney failure. And twelve patients have been hospitalized because they are so sick. The question many families are asking is: where did that pathogenic bacteria come from? We now know the answer to that question. The FDA has shut down Dixie Dew Product's food facility registration as of March 27, 2017. That company is located in Erlanger, Kentucky. The FDA inspected the Dixie Dew facility between March 3 and March 15, 2017. During FDA's inspection, the investigators "observed grossly insanitary conditions that cause your firm's soy nut butter products to be adulterated … [Read more...]
E. coli O157:H7 HUS Outbreak Linked to I.M. Healthy SoyNut Butter Sickens 29
The CDC has announced that the E. coli O157:H7 HUS outbreak linked to I.M. Healthy SoyNut Butter has grown again. Now 29 people in 12 states have been sickened in this outbreak. That is an increase of six people since the last update on March 21, 2017. Three more states are now included in the count: Florida, Illinois, and Massachusetts. Twelve patients have been hospitalized because their illnesses are so serious. Two of the newly sickened have been hospitalized with hemolytic uremic syndrome, a type of kidney failure, which brings the total with HUS in this outbreak to nine. No deaths have been reported to date. The case count by state is: Arizona (4), California (5), Florida (1), Illinois (1), Massachusetts (1), Maryland (1), Missouri (1), New Jersey (1), Oregon (9), Virginia … [Read more...]
FDA Updates I.M. Healthy E. coli O157:H7 – HUS Outbreak
The FDA has updated their investigation into the I.M. Healthy E. coli O157:H7 - HUS outbreak that has sickened 23 people in 9 states, most of them children. The states where the patients live and the case count by state is: Arizona, (4), California (5), Maryland (1), Missouri (1), New Jersey (1), and Oregon (6) Virginia (2), Washington (2) and Wisconsin (1). Ten of the ill persons have been hospitalized because they are so sick. And seven of the patients have developed hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a type of kidney failure that can develop after this infection. On March 2, 2017, the states of California, Washington, and Oregon began to collect open and unopened samples of I.M. Healthy SoyNut Butter from grocery stores and from the homes of patients. Six samples collected by … [Read more...]
Pritzker Hageman Files First AZ I.M. Healthy E. coli HUS Lawsuit
The law firm of Pritzker Hageman has filed the first Arizona lawsuit in the I.M. Healthy SoyNut Butter E. coli O157:H7 - hemolytic uremic syndrome outbreak on behalf of a child. The lawsuit was filed on March 23, 2017 (Case : 1:17-cv-02233) in the United District Court Northern District of Illinois. The client in this case, minor child M.R., contracted a nearly-fatal E. coli O157:H7 infection after eating contaminated soy nut butter manufactured and sold by The SoyNut Butter Company. That infection developed into the complication hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), which destroys the kidneys and can cause serious injury. The lawsuit alleges that the child, who attends a day care facility in Flagstaff, Arizona, consumed some of the SoyNut Butter in early January. On or about January … [Read more...]
