Earlier this year, the Food Safety Summit, an annual gathering of food safety nerds dealt with an outbreak of foodborne illness amongst attendees. Over 100 became ill with C. perfringens  after eating a buffet meal. Conferences provide a nice environment for an outbreak – everyone eats sorta the same stuff and when things go bad, a lot of people get sick. 

WSOCTV reports that Gaston County (NC) health officials are investigating an outbreak of salmonellosis that has been linked to a conference held Oct 1-5 at Living Word Tabernacle Church in Bessemer City.

According to the Department of Health and Human Services, at least 50 attendees are reporting symptoms including diarrhea, abdominal pain and fever.

As of 2 p.m. Tuesday, seven cases of Salmonella were confirmed with a significant number of lab results pending and more samples being collected.

“Our public health staff is working closely with the church, the North Carolina Division of Public Health, and the community,” said Chris Dobbins, DHHS director. “Our priority is to identify those who have fallen ill, ensure they have received proper medical attention, and work together to identify a source so we can educate and prevent future outbreaks of this nature.”