The Public Health Agency of Canada is warning the public about an outbreak of a potentially deadly form of E. coli after at least 24 people became infected and five of them ended up being hospitalized.
The 24 cases of Escherichia coli O157 occurred between July 12 and Aug. 8, with the “peak of illnesses” reported between July 25 and Aug. 1, according a statement from PHAC. The source of the illnesses has not yet been identified and the investigation is ongoing.
A couple who celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary last week have revealed one secret to keeping their marriage from getting stale: eating cake that is very, very much so.
Ann and Ken Fredericks of Satellite Beach, Florida, celebrate their anniversary by eating a bite from their wedding cake every year — the remains of which they’re now keeping covered in plastic wrap inside a metal coffee can, Florida Today reports.
But they don’t store it inside a refrigerator or freezer. The cake’s actually sitting inside a closet at room temperature.
Ann Fredericks, 81, said their children are “appalled” they’re still eating the decades-old dessert, but said the dark fruit cake will keep indefinitely. They pour brandy over the cake to moisten it before digging in, and usually break open a bottle of champagne to go with it, she said.
“Believe me, it’s quite tasty, as long as it’s got enough brandy on it. And it’s never made us sick,” she told Florida Today.
She did tell ABC News that “it’s a little dry.”
Two people with a taste for casseroles were admitted to hospital with methamphetamine poisoning from a contaminated slow cooker.
The pair turned up at Auckland’s Middlemore Hospital in October 2013, suffering from diarrhoea, abdominal cramps, nausea, loss of appetite, dry and sore mouth, palpitations, dizziness, facial flushing, sweating, dilated pupils and racing heart rates.
The symptoms had developed within 10 minutes of eating a homemade bean casserole,
“The bean casserole had been prepared with canned butter beans, canned mixed beans, beef shin on a bone, pork hock, chicken stock powder, onions, carrots, sea salt, pepper, thyme, rosemary and bay leaf,” a detailed ESR report said.
Both reported milder symptoms, after eating the same bean casserole and a homemade beef casserole on separate days before being admitted to hospital.
The beef casserole was made using shin on the bone beef (coated in paprika and potato flour), sea salt, pepper, red wine, tomato paste, mushrooms, garlic, carrots, onions, beef stock and bay leaf, the ESR report said.
Tests of the casseroles at an ESR Laboratory, revealed traces of methamphetamine in both meals.
Further tests revealed methamphetamine inside the slow cooker and on the lid’s inner and outer surfaces.
“There was real concern that a criminal act of food contamination or deliberate poisoning had occurred.”
Police were informed but no further action was taken.
Stung by a national recall of B.C. oysters destined to be eaten raw, the province’s oyster growers have agreed to a new testing regime they hope will get their products back on the market.
Oyster producers have agreed to test five times more oysters at federal processing plants than were being tested before an Aug. 18 recall, said Roberta Stevenson, executive director of the BC Shellfish Grower’s Association.
Most growers support the change even though many feel a large number of the illnesses that triggered the recall could have as much or more to do with improper storage and handling of oysters than with the product they are delivering to market, she said.
“It [increased testing] came about from the recall – in order to address the perception that we are not selling a safe product, we are going to ramp up the number of animals we test, per lot of product,” she said.
“We want to reassure the public and Health Canada and everybody else that we are taking this very seriously.”
Serious? Go public.
The Nanna’s frozen berries Hepatitis A scare and subsequent recall has caused Patties Foods to log a headline profit decline of almost 90 per cent.
Patties Foods, the supplier of the product, today posted a net profit of $2.1m for the twelve months to the end of June, an 87 per cent decline on the prior year’s $16.7m.
On an underlying basis, excluding one-off items, net profit after tax came in at $15.4m for the year, compared with the firm’s guidance of $15m.
A string of Hepatitis A cases in New South Wales and Victoria earlier this year sparked the product recall as health officials blamed the Nanna’s brand 1kg mixed berries which Patties manufactures. The company reportedly sourced strawberries, blackberries, raspberries and blueberries from China.
“The frozen berries recall had a significant impact and was the primary reason for the approximate $14.6m reduction in net profit,” chairman Mark Smith said. The direct costs of the recall, the non-cash impairment of the frozen fruits business cost $13.6m before tax.
“However, it is important to note that total company revenue grew by 3.7 per cent despite the effects of the frozen berries recall, which indicated that the savoury business performed solidly with all core brands growing revenue and profit,” Mr Smith said.
Revenue for the group rose to $257m, up from the prior year’s $248m.
The State Department of Health says there are now four confirmed E. coli cases with three more being investigated.
But, it stresses, there have been no new cases of possible E. coli reported to the agency since the beginning of the month.
The department is still looking into the possible source of exposure.
Nine-year-old Destiny Smith apparently died from E. coli.
Ground beef from conventionally raised cattle is more contaminated and contains a heavier concentration of antibiotic-resistant bacteria than samples from antibiotic-free and organic or grass-fed animals, a new study shows.
A report published Monday by Consumer Reports is one of the first of its kind to compare ground beef from the two sources. It found that nearly 20 percent of the beef from cows that finish their lives in crowded feedlots were tainted with superbugs compared with less than 10 percent of the group largely raised on pastures. Conventional samples also had much higher levels of E. coli, an indication of fecal contamination.
“This is really one of the more significant studies showing the difference in prevalence rates based on those production practices,” said Urvashi Rangan, head of food safety at Consumer Reports.
Consumer Reports tested 300 packages or nearly 500 pounds of ground beef that was purchased last October from big box stores and groceries specializing in sustainable products in 26 cities across the country, including Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles on the West Coast. The samples included a variety of labels, leanness, packaging and countries of origin. Just over 60 percent of the ground beef was from conventionally produced cattle and the rest came from cows raised without antibiotics that were either organic, grass-fed or both.
At what point can consumers have E. coli levels on labels? These are just catch-phrases.
The samples were tested for five common pathogens associated with beef: E. coli, salmonella, enterococcus, Clostridium perfringens and Staphylococcus aureus.
The North American Meat Institute said, in response to the study’s findings, that the research in fact “confirms strong safety of ground beef,” noting that the results did not report findings of highly pathogenic E. coli or Salmonella.
“A review of Consumer Reports’ new study on the safety of ground beef in the U.S. confirms that pathogenic bacteria is rarely found in meat,” the organization said in a release. “The bacteria identified in the Consumer Reports testing are types that rarely cause foodborne illness. Bacteria such as Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus and generic E. coli are commonly found in the environment and are not considered pathogenic bacteria.
“The real headline here is the bacteria that Consumer Reports doesn’t report finding in their testing — Shiga toxin-producing E. coli and Salmonella — which are the foodborne bacteria of greatest public health concern in beef,” said North American Meat Institute Vice President of Scientific Affairs Betsy Booren, in NAMI’s statement.
The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association likewise saw a different picture.
“I have relied on Consumer Reports when purchasing cars and electronics but unfortunately this report will not help consumers when purchasing safe ground beef,” said Mandy Carr Johnson, senior executive director, Science and Product Solutions, for NCBA. “The bacteria found in the Consumer Reports tests are not the type of bacteria commonly associated with foodborne illness in ground beef.”
Said NCBA’s Carr: “The only helpful takeaway from the report for consumers is that all ground beef should be cooked to and internal temperature of 160 degrees Fahrenheit and confirmed with an instant-read meat thermometer, as recommended by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.”
Just cook it doesn’t cut it, and doesn’t deal with cross-contamination. Lower loads.
The Islamic organisations paid to certify halal meat in Australia are being reviewed as part of an overall audit of food certifiers, which includes organic and kosher organisations.
dThe Senate hearing into food certification has been told that there are 22 different halal certifying organisations covering about 70 abattoirs which export to Islamic markets.
Greg Read, from the Federal Agriculture Department, told the hearing the latest review came on top of the regular six-monthly audit carried out on processing plants and a regular review of the Islamic organisations responsible for certification.
“(It is ) just to give us high levels of confidence that’s (the system is) accurate nationally, then the department will effectively do a higher level review over the top of all of those to ensure that we haven’t got any plants that are differing and thereby exposed to the international markets should there be a further review,” he said.
The inquiry, charged with looking at food labelling and third party certification, has attracted over 1,400 submissions, with many focussing on halal certification.
Opponents argue the certification fee is effectively a tax, while prior to the hearing a number of critics claimed the monies raised could be channelled to extremist organisations.
A benefit roping was held Thursday night at the Roosevelt County Fair, New Mexico, for 2-year-old Melrose resident Eliza Dodd, who was diagnosed with hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS).
HUS is an E. coli-related infection that involves loss of motor skills and kidney problems. Dodd arrived home from a 45-day stint at the children’s hospital in Fort Worth about two weeks before the benefit roping.
Event coordinator and roper Jarryd Burris said the event was an incredible success.
“It was excellent to make a significant difference in the lives of a really great family,” Burris said.
The event had over 300 teams, and between the stray gathering won by Jacob and Wesley Gudgell and the team roping, the event collected over $10,000 in donations for the family for medical costs. This surpassed Burris’ original goal of $6,000.
“We are hoping that amount should take the pressure off,” Burris said.
Eliza must receive soliris infusions every two weeks in Lubbock as well as take up to six medications a day.
She is still experiencing extreme fatigue, stomach issues and low kidney function, said Jana, but she has regained the majority of her motor function, speech and brain activity.
“It is our Christian duty to help those in need,” Price’s daughter Mindy Oder said. “It’s the concept of doing unto others what you would have done unto you.”
The Daily Mail delivers what those in the biz call a BJ-piece in a fawning portrait of Heston Blumenthal, whose new menu will take diners on a ‘story-telling’ journey aimed at capturing childhood feelings of adventure when the new menu at his Fat Duck restaurant launches next month.
I have those childhood memories: being on the couch for a couple of days, watching bad game shows and barfing endlessly, much like the 529 diners and staff who were sickened by norovirus at the Fat Duck in 2009.
He has even turned to magician Derren Brown for tips on how to personalise people’s dinner choices by using auto-suggestion techniques so that diners get what they think they most crave.
Get the food safety right first, then indulge yourself with magic.
He also acknowledged that having more than 70 staff make handmade food for 40 seats at each service would likely force up the price of a meal.
Follow the money.