The deadly Listeria monocytogenes outbreak that has killed three people in Kansas has been linked to Blue Bell ice cream. When most people think of food poisoning, they think of undercooked or raw meat or eggs. How does a supposedly innocuous product like ice cream become contaminated with pathogenic bacteria? Listeria monocytogenes bacteria are everywhere in our environment. These bacteria live in soil and water. Animals carry the bacteria and can transfer it to our food though feces, through dirty irrigation water, and in food harvesting and transport. All bacteria love food because it's a great source of nutrients. Listeria monocytogenes bacteria are unique in that they can grow at refrigerator and even freezer temperatures. In fact, the longer a food contaminated with this … [Read more...]
Listeria Warning: Check Your Freezer for Recalled Blue Bell Ice Cream
A deadly outbreak of Listeria monocytogenes linked to ice cream produced at the Blue Bell facility Brenham, Texas has prompted the recall of several Blue Bell products. Five people at the Via Christi Hospital in Wichita, Kansas were sickened after they ate Blue Bell ice cream and milkshakes made with that ice cream. Three of those people died. Investigations by public health officials discovered rare strains of Listeria monocytogenes in samples of Blue Bell Creameries single serving Chocolate Chip Country Cookie Sandwich and the Great Divide Bar ice cream products at a Blue Bell South Carolina distribution center in February 2015. These products were manufactured at the Brenham, Texas facility. Inspections at that facility found the outbreak strains of Listeria monocytogenes in the same … [Read more...]
People From Five Kansas Counties Hit With Listeria in Past Year
Residents from five Kansas counties have been hit with Listeria food poisoning since January 2014, including five Kansans believed to be sickened by contaminated Blue Bell ice cream served at Via Christi St. Francis Hospital in Wichita. The statistics from the Kansas Department of Health and Environment don't reveal names or hometowns of those who became ill, nor would the agency say which of the six listeriosis patients from the five counties are considered victims of the Blue Bell/Via Christi outbreak. Of the six Kansas listeriosis patients, two are from Sedgwick County, which is dominated by the Wichita area. One each is from Harvey (county seat is Newton, Kansas); Wyandotte (county seat is Kansas City); Shawnee (county seat is Topeka, Kansas) and Ford (county seat is Dodge City, … [Read more...]
Blue Bell Had Trouble With Ice Cream Line Before Listeria Discovery
The maker of Blue Bell ice cream shut down its Scoops production line even before South Carolina health inspectors discovered Listeria in products from the same line, the company's CEO has said in two separate interviews about a deadly Kansas listeriosis outbreak associated with Scoops. Blue Bell CEO Paul Cruse told The Houston Chonicle in a March 13 story that the machine utilized to make Scoops and other single-serve items had not been in operation for about a month and a half. That means the shutdown occurred days if not weeks before February 12, when the South Carolina Department of Health & Environmental Control first detected Listeria monocytogenes in two types of Blue Bell products made on the same line. The checks were part of routine inspections of food products at a … [Read more...]
Listeria In Blue Bell Ice Cream Kills 3 Sickens 2 More at Via Christi Hospital in Wichita
A Listeria outbreak linked to Blue Bell ice cream served to patients at Via Christi Hospital in Wichita has killed three people and sickened two others, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. Between January 2014 and January 2015, five patients hospitalized for unrelated causes all contracted listeriosis. Four of those sickened were able to provide a food history and all of them reported having milkshakes made with Blue Bell “Scoops,” a single serving product, while they were in the hospital. Cultures from those patients were positive for four strains of Listeria. Tests on Blue Bell ice cream obtained in South Carolina and Texas in 2015 yielded three strains that matched those isolated from patients. The … [Read more...]
Missouri Links Were Central to Caramel Apple Listeria Outbreak
Five Missouri residents were confirmed as case patients in the Listeria caramel apple outbreak and two Missouri food companies were involved in key recalls of caramel apples that they distributed around the country. Only one other state besides Missouri had more than five listeriosis victims in the outbreak and one of the state's recalls covered caramel apples made by a Missouri company for Kroger stores in many different parts of the country. From the outset of public awareness of this outbreak in mid- to late-December, Missouri citizens and companies were in the discussion. On December 24, 2014, the Happy Apple Company of Washington, Missouri, issued a recall of many Happy Apple Brand caramel apples because they had the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. Some … [Read more...]
Arizona Confirms 5th Patient in Listeria Caramel Apple Outbreak
Arizona marked its fifth case of Listeria from contaminated caramel apples in January, making it a leading state in a deadly outbreak that also has harmed a number of babies and expecting mothers. Now with five case patients, the Grand Canyon State has as many confirmed illnesses in the outbreak as Missouri and just one less than New Mexico, which leads all states with six listeriosis victims who fell sick after eating commercially produced, pre-packaged caramel apples. With two other new cases recorded in early January, the collective toll now stands at 35 Listeria infections in 12 states attributed to contaminated caramel apples. Minnesota, Wisconsin, Texas and California also have multiple residents who were infected. According to a revised outbreak summary published by the … [Read more...]
Arizona Shares Pain of Listeria Outbreak Linked to Caramel Apples
Arizona was on the receiving end of caramel apples that were contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, an unfortunate distribution that left four state residents hospitalized from the potentially deadly infections that followed. The four confirmed outbreak cases in Arizona stand as the third most for any state. One of the victims was a baby with Listeria and three of the four are females who range in age up to 76. At least in Arizona, no fatalities were reported. In New Mexico and California, food safety lawyers are suing the supplier of the apples, Bidart Brothers, on behalf of several case patients, one of whom died. More litigation is expected in other states as the investigation continues into a reported 32 illnesses and seven deaths across 11 states. Evidence of matching strains of … [Read more...]
Oasis Cheese Listeria Outbreak Sickened Five in 2014
Listeria outbreaks are often linked to soft cheese, usually made by small facilities. The 2014 outbreak associated with Oasis Brands soft cheeses and the current outbreak linked to Queseria Bendita soft cheeses are two cases in point. There are several reasons for these outbreaks: small vendors may not have the experience or training to understand the risks inherent in making their product. These cheeses have higher pH than aged cheese and a high moisture content, which makes them quite susceptible to contamination. And third, Listeria monocytogenes bacteria is everywhere and it is hardy, growing at refrigerator temperatures and quite difficult to kill. The outbreak in 2014 was never definitely linked to Oasis brand cheeses, but Listeria strains isolated from quesito casero cheese … [Read more...]
Paris Researchers Find Placental Breach Mechanism for Listeria
As the deadly Listeria monocytogenes outbreaks linked to recalled caramel apples made from Bidart brothers apples, and to Queseria Bendita cheese point out, pregnant women are very susceptible to these bacterial infections. In the caramel apple outbreak, ten pregnant women were sickened; one woman suffered a fetal loss. In the Queseria Bendita cheese outbreak, one infection was associated with a pregnancy. Scientists believe that the bacteria get into the placenta and hide from the mother's immune system, letting them multiple to dangerous levels. But the placental barrier usually acts as a barrier to bacteria. What makes Listeria different? Researchers at the Pasteur Institute in Paris have found that Listeria survives and grows within the intestinal lumen (channels in the … [Read more...]
