Category Archives: E. coli

Restaurant liable in 2011 E. coli outbreak with 5 dead: Food safety disasters nothing new in Japan

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In June 1996, initial reports of an outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 in Japan surfaced in national media.

By July 1996, focus had centered on specific school cafeterias and two vendors of box lunches, as the number of illnesses approached 4,000. Lunches of sea eel sushi and soup distributed on July 5 from Sakai’s central school lunch depot were identified by health authorities as a possible source of one outbreak. The next day, the number of illnesses had increased to 7,400 even as reports of Japanese fastidiousness intensified. By July 23, 1996, 8,500 were listed as ill.

Even though radish sprouts were ultimately implicated — and then publicly cleared in a fall-on-sword ceremony, but not by the U.S. — the Health and Welfare Ministry announced that Japan’s 333 slaughterhouses must adopt a quality control program modeled on U.S. safety procedures, requiring companies to keep records so the source of any tainted food could be quickly identified. Kunio Morita, chief of the ministry’s veterinary sanitation division was quoted as saying “It’s high time for Japan to follow the international trend in sanitation management standards.”

Japanese health authorities were terribly slow to respond to the outbreak of E. coli O157:H7, a standard facilitated by a journalistic culture of aversion rather than adversarial. In all, over 9,500 Japanese, largely schoolchildren, were stricken with E. coli O157:H7 and 12 were killed over the summer of 1996, raising questions of political accountability.

The national Mainichi newspaper demanded in an editorial on July 31, 1996, “Why can’t the government learn from past experience? Why were they slow to react to the outbreak? Why can’t they take broader measures?” The answer, it said, was a “chronic ailment” — the absence of anyone in the government to take charge in a crisis and ensure a coordinated response. An editorial cartoon in the daily Asahi Evening News showed a health worker wearing the label “government emergency response” riding to the rescue on a snail. Some of the victims have filed lawsuits against Japanese authorities, a move previously unheard of in the Japanese culture of deference.

Fifteen years later, with at least four dead and 100 sick from E. coli O111 served in raw beef at the Yakiniku-zakaya Ebisu barbecue restaurant chain, Japanese corporate, political and media leaders are still struggling.

Anrakutei Co., a Saitama-based yakiniku barbecue chain, stopped serving yukke at its 250 outlets, mainly in the Kanto region, on Tuesday.

“We’ve been providing the dish to customers based on strict quality control, but customers’ concerns make it difficult to continue to serve it,” a public relations official of the company said.

Anrakutei said the company conducts bacteria tests on the Australian beef it uses for yukke three times–first before it is purchased, again before it is sent to the company’s meat processing plant and finally before it is shipped to outlets. At the plant, the meat is processed separately from other food materials to prevent it from coming into contact with bacteria, the company explained.

There is no discussion of what is being tested, and how valid those tests are at picking up a non-O157 shiga-toxin producing E. coli like O111 There is no verification that anyone is testing anything.

In the absence of meat goggles that can magically detect dangerous bacteria, eating raw hamburger remains a risk.

Today, the Tokyo District Court ordered restaurant chain operator Foods Forus Co. to pay ¥169 million ($1.58 million) to the families of three victims who died from food poisoning after eating raw meat at one of its barbecue restaurants in 2011.

While the court awarded damages to the plaintiffs, it ruled that the former president of Foods Forus, which is filing for special liquidation, was not guilty of gross negligence. The plaintiffs had sought around ¥209 million in damages and medical treatment expenses from the company and the former president.

Around 180 customers developed symptoms of food poisoning after dining at six Yakiniku-zakaya Ebisu restaurants in four prefectures — Kanagawa, Toyama, Ishikawa, and Fukui — in April 2011. A strain of E. coli, O-111, was found in many of the victims.

Five died due to illness. Nine plaintiffs, including the families of three who died after eating at the outlet in Tonami, Toyama Prefecture, sued the company and the former president in October 2014.

In February 2016, police investigated the former president on suspicion of professional negligence resulting in death or injury and sent the case to prosecutors. But the prosecutors decided not to indict him.

The families of the victims are considering filing a petition with a prosecution inquest panel in a bid to overturn the decision.

Fruit flies can transfer foodborne pathogens

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I began as a genetics undergrad at the University of Guelph in 1981.

Chapman started as a genetics undergrad in 1997, and started working with me in 2000 (Or as he says, Walkerton, meaning the E. coli O157 outbreak in drinking water that killed 7 and sickened half the town of 5,000. We, and many others, carry our own versions of Walkerton scars.) although he maintains I didn’t know he existed for the first two years.

He’s probably about right.

But we have claimed each other, in Kevin Smith terms, as hetero life mates.

So when this paper popped up in our googleness, we both had to comment.

We geneticists all worked with fruit flies, and learned nothing except weird sexual manipulation stuff and David Suzuki BS science.

Black et al. write fruit flies are a familiar sight in many food service facilities (and my kitchen, and this is why I insist on screens). Although they have been long considered as “nuisance pests,” some of their typical daily activities suggest they may pose a potential public health threat.

The aim of this study was to provide evidence of the ability of small flies to transfer bacteria from a contaminated source, food, or waste to surfaces or ready-to-eat food. Laboratory experiments were conducted by using purpose-built fly enclosures to assess the bacterial transfer capability of fruit flies. Drosophila repleta were capable of transferring Escherichia coli O157:H7, Salmonella Saint Paul, and Listeria innocua from an inoculated food source to the surface of laboratory enclosures. In addition, using an inoculated doughnut and noncontaminated lettuce and doughnut surfaces, fly-mediated cross-contamination of ready-to-eat food was demonstrated. Fruit flies were shown to be capable of accumulating approximately 2.9 × 103 log CFU of E. coli per fly within 2 h of exposure to a contaminated food source. These levels of bacteria did not decrease over an observation period of 48 h. Scanning electron micrographs were taken of bacteria associated with fly food and contact body parts and hairs during a selection of these experiments. These data, coupled with the feeding and breeding behavior of fruit flies in unsanitary areas of the kitchen and their propensity to land and rest on food preparation surfaces and equipment, indicate a possible role for fruit flies in the spread of foodborne pathogens.

Fruit flies as potential vectors of foodborne illness

March 2018

Journal of Food Protection, vol. 81, no. 3, pg. 509-514

P. Black,*G. J. Hinrichs, S. J. Barcay, and D. B. Gardner

https://doi.org/10.4315/0362-028X.JFP-17-255

http://jfoodprotection.org/doi/10.4315/0362-028X.JFP-17-255?code=fopr-site

I'm Jay, and this is my hetero life mate, Silent Bob.

Apparently you shouldn’t eat lunch at your desk

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I just did but made sure to keep my food in my Tupperware and washed my hands before eating. Love it when I see these stories and studies trying to panic the masses with bacterial names and how many there are per square inch….

The risk is low.

Brinkwire reports:

See why your desk at work is 400 times dirtier than your toilet
Here’s something that’ll put you right off your lunch.
Your desk at work has 400 times more germs than your toilet, according to a study by the University of Arizona.
And the research also reveals two-thirds of office workers are at risk of making themselves ill by eating at their desks.
Nasties such as e-coli (found in poo), staphylococcus aureus, pseudomonas aeruginosa and helicobacter pylori were among the harmful bacteria found breeding on work desks, the Bristol Post reports .
An average desktop contains 20,961 germs per square inch – not counting the 3,295 on the keyboard, 1,676 on a mouse and a staggering 25,127 on the phone.
Hygiene experts reveal dirtiest place in the house – and it ISN’T the toilet
People in sales and marketing are the worst for cleanliness with over a fifth (22%) admitting that they only clean their desk once a month.
The printer is also a place that could use a good clean; the study commissioned by Printerland.co.uk found that an average office printer contain 1,676 germs per square inch. 
And the office kitchen isn’t much better where 2,483 germs per square inch can be found on the handle of the kitchen kettle in a shared office compared to just 49 found on a toilet seat.
Even the tap – despite being surrounded by water – conceals 1,331 germs per square inch.
Of course you reduce the number of germs on your desk by using antibacterial wipes and sprays.
Lorry driver Wayne enjoys new life after 12st weight loss
Catherine Bannan, HR manager for Printerland.co.uk, said: “It’s pretty shocking that there are more germs on your desk than on a toilet seat.
“But hopefully our visualisation will show people why it is so important to clean regularly so as to avoid getting ill and spreading infections unnecessarily amongst your colleagues.”

Food supplier fined £180k for rat infestation and unhygienic conditions

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Food supplier fined £180k for rat infestation and unhygienic conditions

During the course of my career I have seen many rats in a variety of food outlets. In one instance, I recall finding rats droppings in a restaurant kitchen and heard a loud noise in the food storage room. I walked in with my flashlight and still have nightmares from what I saw, thought it was a cat….Pest control is important to prevent unwanted contamination to the food supply. Evidently, East End Foods thought differently.

James Ridler of Food Manufacture reports

East End Foods has been fined £180k for a rat infestation
Indian cuisine supplier East End Foods has been fined £180,000 for food safety offences, after an infestation of rats was discovered at one of its warehouses in Birmingham.
During a visit on 16 January last year, environmental health officers found rat droppings throughout both floors of the building, plus evidence of gnawed food and packaging.
Inspectors also found that cleaning at the premises was poor, and discovered yogurt past its use-by date.
A Hygiene Emergency Prohibition Notice, a schedule of work necessary to be carried out to remove imminent risk of injury to health and an application for a Hygiene Emergency Prohibition Order were served on East End Foods.
The premises was revisited twice on 19 and 23 January 2017 and was allowed to reopen after inspectors were satisfied that the company had taken steps to improve conditions at the warehouse. The site has since closed.
Pleaded guilty
East End Foods pleaded guilty to three offences under the Food Safety and Hygiene (England) Regulations 2013 during a hearing at Birmingham Magistrates Court on 4 January this year.
The offences included a failure to put adequate procedures in place to control pests and a failure to ensure food premises were kept clean and maintained in good repair and condition.
The company had also failed to ensure that at all stages of production, processing and the distribution of food were protected against contamination, which was likely to render the food unfit for human consumption.
East End Foods was fined £180,000 and ordered to pay costs of £3,453.30, plus a £170 victim surcharge, at Birmingham Magistrates Court on 1 March 2018.
‘Not in accordance with usual standards’
An East End Foods spokesman said: “The company regrets that the conditions at the former wholesale unit were not in accordance with its usual high standards. The company has fully cooperated with the Council.
“The case did not concern any of the company’s food processing facilities, which continue to operate to the very highest standards of quality and cleanliness.”
A rat infestation also forced sandwich manufacturer CK Foods in Bedale, North Yorkshire – trading as Country Kitchens – to close part of its factory for three days last month.
Meanwhile, food manufacturers face a new generation of mutant rats resistant to conventional poison, according to the British Pest Control Association.

 

Raw is risky: Fresh herbs can be contaminated

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I’m not a fan of the guac, ever since a hungover former partner spewed vile smelling green stuff at the side of the road decades ago.

And I’m wary of fresh herbs, based on previous outbreaks.

So is the U.S. Food and Drug Administration which on Feb. 23, 2018, revealed details on just how many bacteria are hiding in fresh, store-bought herbs. The agency plans to continue testing herbs through 2019 to thoroughly assess their “rates of bacterial contamination.”

The plan is to test 1,600 samples of items “typically eaten without having undergone a ‘kill step,’ such as cooking, to reduce or eliminate bacteria.” These items include fresh cilantro, parsley, and basil.

This first round of results revealed that of the 139 fresh herb samples tested, four tested positive for salmonella and three contained E. coli bacteria.

The Packer noted the testing found  no pathogens in the U.S. herbs versus imported herbs.

In the same period, the FDA found that three of the 58 U.S.-processed avocado products that were tested had listeria, and one of the 49 imported samples had listeria.

From 1996 to 2015, the FDA linked 2,699 illnesses and 84 hospitalizations to fresh herbs.

The FDA also plans to sample processed avocado for similar reasons – from 2005 to 2015, 525 illnesses were linked to avocados in 12 separate outbreaks. Of 107 avocado and guacamole samples in the initial results, four contained listeria. Avocados, the FDA notes, “have a high moisture content and a non-acidic pH level, conditions that can support the growth of harmful bacteria.”

E. coli spread in cattle caused by water troughs

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Krishna Ramanujan of the Cornell Chronicle reports:

A major study led by Cornell researchers reveals for the first time that water troughs on farms are a conduit for the spread of toxic E. coli in cattle, which can then spread the pathogen to people through bacteria in feces. The study was published Feb. 7 in the journal PLOS ONE.
“Water troughs appeared in our mathematical model as a place where water can get contaminated and a potential place where we could break the cycle,” said Renata Ivanek, associate professor of epidemiology in the College of Veterinary Medicine and the paper’s senior author. The hypothesis was then tested in the field – with surprising results.
People commonly acquire infections from shiga toxin-producing E. coli through cow feces-contaminated beef and salad greens. The main shiga toxin-producing strain, E. coli 0157:H7, causes more than 63,000 illnesses per year and about 20 deaths, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Though cows carry and spread E. coli 0157:H7 when they defecate, the bacteria do not make them sick.
“Farmers do not see a problem because there are no clinical signs in cows; it is totally invisible,” Ivanek said.
A vaccine to reduce bacterial shedding in cows exists, but the beef industry has little incentive to use it, partly due to cost, and the industry does not benefit from labeling beef as “E. coli safe,” Ivanek said. So Ivanek and a research team of 20 co-authors conducted a study to identify other ways to reduce the bacteria’s prevalence in cattle, which can vary over the year from zero to 100 percent of cows in a feedlot carrying the bacteria, with rates generally rising in the summer.
The researchers ran mathematical modeling studies to see if they could pinpoint areas in the farm where infections might spread between cattle. They found that water in a trough, especially in summer months, could heat and promote pathogen replication, causing more cows to acquire the bacteria when they drink. The researchers hypothesized that frequently changing the water in the summer could keep the water colder, limiting bacterial growth.
On most farms, water troughs automatically refill when they get low enough, and farmers can adjust the water levels so they refill more often. This tact saves water and keeps it fresher while ensuring cows still have enough to drink.
The group ran control trials in a feedlot over two summers. This involved reducing the water volume in troughs in randomly selected treatment pens and leaving the volume unchanged in control pens. They expected that reducing the water levels in troughs would prevent the spread of E. coli. Instead they found that it increased spread; in the treatment pens, the odds of finding shiga toxin-producing E. coli in cows was about 30 percent higher than in the control pens.
“Our modeling studies did pick up the right parts of the system,” Ivanek said, “but the mechanism that we postulated is the opposite from what we thought.”
More study is needed to determine why more water in troughs reduced E. coli in cows, but Ivanek questions whether the lower volume made it easier for cows to swallow debris at the bottom of tanks, or whether a fuller tank reduced E. coli concentrations.
The study will trigger more research on environmental sources of E. coli spread in cattle, Ivanek said.
Next steps include repeating the results in other feedlots, evaluating the effectiveness and cost benefit of using more water to reduce E. coli, investigating how seasons and temperatures play a role in prevalence of E. coli, and understanding the actual mechanisms that led to the results.
Wendy Beauvais, a postdoctoral researcher in Ivanek’s lab, is the paper’s first author. Co-authors included researchers from Texas A&M University, West Texas A&M University and Texas Tech University.
The study was funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the National Institutes of Health and the Texas Veterinary Medical Foundation.

 

Food Safety Talk 146: Vegas Baby!

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The show opens with a discussion of Don’s failed attempt to add an audio sound board to the show, followed by a discussion about the Winter Olympics. The food safety talk begins with listener feedback a viral Facebook post on hot air hand dryers, and the resulting New York Times article. Listener feedback continues with a discussion of the danger zone (both musical and bacterial). The final bit of listener feedback is related to the microbiological safety of homemade “Play Dough”, followed by a discussion of food safety in the news and a Salmonella outbreak linked to Kratom. Ben talks about his appearance on “The Doctors”, and then the guys talk about Salmonella in chicken salad and pet food, before concluding a brief discussion of upcoming travel.

Episode 146 is available on iTunes and here.

Show notes so you can follow along at home.

 

 

60 days don’t mean shit: 1 dead, 28 sick from E. coli O157:H7 in raw milk cheese, Canada, 2013

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Between 12 July and 29 September 2013, 29 individuals in five Canadian provinces became ill following infection with the same strain of Escherichia coli O157:H7 as defined by molecular typing results. Five case patients were hospitalized, and one died.

Twenty-six case patients (90%) reported eating Gouda cheese originating from a dairy plant in British Columbia. All of the 22 case patients with sufficient product details available reported consuming Gouda cheese made with raw milk; this cheese had been produced between March and July 2013 and was aged for a minimum of 60 days. The outbreak strain was isolated from the implicated Gouda cheese, including one core sample obtained from an intact cheese wheel 83 days after production.

The findings indicate that raw milk was the primary source of the E. coli O157:H7, which persisted through production and the minimum 60-day aging period. This outbreak is the third caused by E. coli O157:H7 traced to Gouda cheese made with raw milk in North America.

These findings provide further evidence that a 60-day ripening period cannot ensure die-off of pathogens that might be present in raw milk Gouda cheese after production and have triggered an evaluation of processing conditions, physicochemical parameters, and options to mitigate the risk of E. coli O157:H7 infection associated with raw milk Gouda cheese produced in Canada.

Outbreak of Escherichia coli O157:H7 infections linked to aged raw milk gouda cheese, Canada, 2013

Andrea Currie, Eleni Galanis, Pedro Chacon, Regan Murray, Lynn Wilcott, Paul Kirkby, Lance Honish, Kristyn Franklin, Jeff Farber, Rob Parker, Sion Shyng, Davendra Sharma, Lorelee Tschetter, Linda Hoang, Linda Chui, Ana Pacagnella, Julie Wong, Jane Pritchard, Ashley Kerr, Marsha Taylor, Victor Mah, and James Flint

Journal of Food Protection, vol. 81, No. 2, 2018, pg. 325-331

doi:10.4315/0362-028X.JFP-17-283

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29369688

Restaurant closed due to a cockroach infestation

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I have always been curious to see what others thought on the following:
How many chances should the Health Department give a food service/retail establishment that has been chronically shut down before permanently having their business license rescinded?
I’m not talking about the minor violations that are encountered during a routine inspection, more of the deliberate critical infractions that can severely impact public health. As practicing food safety professionals, where do we draw the line? Inspections are a snap shop in time and food safety resonates upon behaviors for positive change. But what do we do with those select few places that simply don’t care and abide by the mentality that if I am fined, well it’s the cost of doing business? I’ve heard this and I’m sure others have as well. I would love to hear what Barfblog readers have to say regarding this matter.

A vile cockroach-infested restaurant has been shut down after revolting insects were discovered throughout the dilapidated building.
The pests were found hiding in the fridge door seal, preventing it from closing properly, and crawling around exposed foods, food containers and over kitchen surfaces.
Guildford Magistrates’ Court heard stomach-turning evidence of how owner Amjad Parvez Butt had been seen coughing over food, then failing to use soap when washing his hands.
Mr Butt was charged with seven counts of food safety and hygiene regulations contravention, all of which he pleaded guilty to.
Under routine inspection on June 27 last year, an environmental health officer from Rushmoor Borough Council visited the Lali Gurash Nepalese restaurant in Aldershot.
In the initial report, read to the court on Wednesday (February 14), the officer said: “When I arrived, I witnessed Mr Butt coughing while preparing food – he then washed his hands without using soap.”
The general first impression was that Mr Butt was not preparing food safely and an in depth inspection began.
After examining the fridge, it became apparent the door would not close properly due to a number of cockroaches living within the door seal.
The officer also noticed the building had structural damage, including a hole in the wall, through which clear daylight could be seen and gaps in the flooring near the waste pipes.
Further evidence of insect activity was discovered in the basement, around food preparation areas and in the proximity of exposed onions and potatoes.
During the inspection it also became apparent that Mr Butt had not been filling in the mandatory safer food, better business (SFBB) checks that RBC enforces, with the last entry filed more than five weeks prior to the visit.
The restaurant was closed and Mr Butt was ordered to arrange for a pest control team to install traps throughout the building.
A few days later, officers returned to discover a full life cycle of cockroaches in the traps, indicating that they had been present in the area for a minimum of six weeks.
Officers consistently monitored the progress of the restaurant until July 20, when, in the absence of any infestation, it was deemed acceptable for re-opening.
During the scheduled three-month re-visit, Mr Butt was asked to produce his SFBB documents, which he was unable to do, and the restaurant was once again closed.
In court, with the assistance of a translator, he explained that he was unable to read and write and claimed that his daughter was going to complete the checks for him but was away on holiday at the time.
The 53-year-old said: “When I first noticed the cockroaches I bought some spray and contacted pest control but they never got back to me.
“When I was told to close the restaurant and destroy the food, I did.
“I have lost a lot of profit and it is the first time this has happened – I ask for forgiveness.”

The rest of the story can be found here

New class of antibiotics may be capable of killing superbugs

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When I was younger my mother got me a job in a hospital as a nurse’s aide while I finished my studies at university. As part of my duties I had to ensure patients that had methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) were well taken care of. I was in my second year of University at that time and was vaguely familiar with this bug. Then came vancomycin resistant Enterococcus (VRE).
I left.

Anne Stych of Biz Women reports

Scientists studying microorganisms living in soil have discovered a new class of antibiotics that could kill deadly superbugs without triggering resistance.
The discovery leads researchers to believe there’s “a reservoir of antibiotics in the environment we haven’t accessed yet,” said Sean Brady, an associate professor at Rockefeller University in New York, who led the study.
The research, published in the journal Nature Microbiology, said the newly-discovered antibiotics kill superbugs including methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), a potentially deadly infection that is resistant to several antibiotics.
A team led by Brady discovered the new class of antibiotics, called malacidins, while cloning and sequencing DNA from microorganisms in soil samples contributed by people across the United States, The Washington Post reported.
They were looking for microorganisms with a known gene that acts as an “on/off” switch and makes it more difficult for microbes to develop antibiotic resistance, per the Post.
The World Health Organization (WHO) last month called antibiotic resistance a “serious situation” worldwide in both low-income and high-income countries.
The organization’s research showed that resistance to commonly-used antibiotics varied widely among the 22 reporting countries, with resistance to penicillin in bacterial pneumonia cases ranging from zero to 51 percent, while E coli bacteria antibiotic resistance levels ranged from 8 percent to 65.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, each year at least 2 million people in the United States become infected with bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics. At least 23,000 people die as a direct result, while many more die of conditions that were complicated by an antibiotic-resistant infection.
Worldwide, deaths from antibiotic-resistant infections are predicted to reach10 million a year by 2050, per the Post.
“Some of the world’s most common — and potentially most dangerous — infections are proving drug-resistant,“ said Dr . Marc Sprenger, director of the WHO Antimicrobial Resistance Secretariat. “And most worrying of all, pathogens don’t respect national borders. That’s why WHO is encouraging all countries to set up good surveillance systems for detecting drug resistance that can provide data to this global system.”
Researchers said although the discovery is promising and reveals the untapped biodiversity of our ecosystem, it will take years for the new class of antibiotics to be developed for practical use.