Category Archives: Food Safety Policy

Use a thermometer: 21 sickened: Campy in UK liver pate, again

Posted on by
Reply

Yorkshire Coast Radio reports Diversorium Ltd, the company which owns and operates the Downe Arms, a country inn hotel in Wykeham near Scarborough, has been fined £8,000 for two serious food hygiene related offences after an outbreak of Campylobacter food poisoning was traced back to contaminated chicken liver pate eaten at the hotel.

Following a prosecution by Scarborough Borough Council, Diversorium Ltd pleaded guilty at Scarborough Magistrates Court to two offences under the Food Safety and Hygiene (England) Regulations after 21 people fell ill following a Christmas party night on 17 December 2016 and a Christmas break package at the hotel during the same month. The court ruled that fines of £5,000 and £3000 respectively should be paid for the offences. The company was also ordered to pay the council £2170 in costs.

The council’s Environmental Health team received complaints from those affected by the food poisoning and during the subsequent investigation it was apparent that there were a number of issues which were not consistent with good hygiene practices and food safety management records were incomplete. In particular, the process for preparing the chicken liver pate had not been validated by appropriate temperature monitoring and recording, and food safety was not being managed effectively. The extensive investigation, carried out in conjunction with Public Health England, concluded that the pate was the most probable cause of the illness. The business was subsequently marked down to a food hygiene rating of 1 (major improvement necessary).

Hospitals should watch their litigation backside if growing their own produce with no safety talk

Posted on by
1

I’m not Debbie Downer, but I am Dougie Downer and never get invited to dinner.

This idea has risk written all over it.

Sarah Toy of USA Today writes that high atop the roof of a Boston hospital power plant in the middle of the city, you’ll find something unexpected: A 7,000-square-foot oasis with a lush carpet of green, rows upon rows of mesclun, kale, rainbow chard and a sea of plump green and red tomatoes.

Sounds good, has all the buzzwords except the one that I and anyone serving meals to immunocompromised people in hospitals should care about: microbiologically safe.

“There is an increasing trend in hospital farms,” said Stacia Clinton, the national program director for Health Care Without Harm’s Healthy Food in Health Care program, which advises hospitals on ways to provide sustainable and nutritious food. “There’s a greater demand now for people to know where their food is coming from, and hospitals are looking for ways to connect people to their food more directly.”

No mention of produce food safety.

If it’s growing on roofs, birds –Salmonella and Campylobacter factories – are crapping on the stuff, and washing does almost nothing.

Eating too much black licorice is harmful, FDA warns

Posted on by
Reply

I’ve never liked licorice, especially the black stuff.

Reminds me of a grandparent’s decaying hard candy dish.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is, according to Ashley May of USA Today, warning consumers not eat large amounts of black licorice.

The candy, made from a shrub usually found in Greece, Turkey and Asia, contains a compound (glycyrrhizin) that can lower a person’s potassium levels, FDA experts say. So, eating too much could cause heart problems, high blood pressure, swelling and sluggishness, an FDA advisory reports.  

Last year, the FDA heard of at least one case of black licorice causing health problems, according to the advisory. 

Especially for those 40-years-old and older, eating two ounces of black licorice a day for at least two weeks could throw off heart rhythms. 

Food Safety Talk 138: Ominous noises

Posted on by
Reply

This special pre-halloween episode features ominous noises, and we are not talking about the pinging noise from Don’s email in the background.  The show opens with discussion not of noise, but of the sights and smells of fresh compost around Ben’s office.  After a brief digression into favorite TV, podcasts and fan feedback, the talk turns to recent food safety publications on cutting board safety and water bottle sanitation, followed by best Reduced Oxygen Packaging Handling practices from listener feedback. Next Ben gets real time inspiration and the guys do some back of the envelope risk assessment on home preparation of black garlic before a discussion raw camel milk and the risks of fake cures.  The show ends with a discussion of turkey eggs and Canadian Thanksgiving.

Episode 138 can be found here and on iTunes.

Here are show notes so you can follow along at home:

Raw camel milk in US

Posted on by
1

Whenever someone writes, “frozen in Kansas” I think, that could have been me.

Ice storms and stuff.

And being a professor.

Making lots of money, going with the flow, and checking my brain at the door – on the few days I showed up.

So I decided to support my wife – although I’ve been a bit of a dick about it for the last 6 years – and move to Australia, eventually ending my career.

Although I do have a new job with the least amount of responsibility possible.

I’m having my American Beauty moment (but not chasing after younger girls, quite happy, and she noted it’s been 12 years since we first met).

So when raw milk advocate David Gumpert writes about raw camel milk and how the U.S. Food and Drug is asking the federal court to allow it to seize more than $70,000 worth of raw camel milk, some of it frozen, in storage in Kansas, and there’s some government conspiracy, I cast aspersions.

The agency had warned the owner of a small Missouri farm, which accounts for the bulk of raw camel milk production in the U.S., — of course it is in Missouri — to refrain from shipping it outside that state. The owner had reportedly agreed to the FDA’s order.

Now, a number of media are reporting that the FDA is asking a federal court to allow it to seize raw camel milk from the farm, known as Hump-Back Dairys, along with that of a national distributor of camel milk, Desert Farms.

Waste of time. Move on.Keep moving on.

Fancy food ain’t safe food: New York edition

Posted on by
Reply

One of New York’s most expensive restaurants is in some trouble with the Food and Drug Administration over its fresh fish.

John Tozzi of Bloomberg writes that Masa, which earned three Michelin stars for its $595 tasting menu (before drinks and tax), received a warning letter from the FDA dated Oct. 16 alleging violations of federal rules that govern seafood imports. “Your fresh trevally and fresh Katsuwonus pelamis (Katsuo), also known as skipjack tuna or bonito,” the agency wrote in a letter published online this week, “have been prepared, packed, or held under insanitary conditions whereby they may have been rendered injurious to health.”

“We take FDA regulations very seriously and, of course, food safety is always a priority. We are working closely with our purveyors in Japan to get this resolved quickly,” said Tina Clabbers, a representative for Masa, in an email.

While the the FDA doesn’t typically regulate individual restaurants, the agency has jurisdiction over seafood importers. Inspectors visited Masa on June 22, according to the letter, which redacted the name of the restaurant’s fish supplier.

The letter doesn’t specify the precise nature of the violation, and a spokesperson in the FDA’s New York district office was not available for comment.

Food Safety Talk 137: Grandma makes the best pickles

Posted on by
Reply

Don and Ben talk High Sierra and bricking a MacBook Air, Gord Downie of the Tragically Hip, State Fair judging, pH test strips, mail order food safety and cold brewed canned coffee. They also do some listener feedback on food safe issues related to brewing beer.

Episode 137 can be found here and on iTunes.

Show notes so you can follow along at home:

1 dead, 18 sick: Raw frozen chicken thingies strike again, in Canada

Posted on by
Reply

Sofina Foods Inc. of London, Ontario (that’s in Canada, not the UK), is recalling Janes brand frozen uncooked breaded chicken products from the marketplace due to possible Salmonella contamination. Consumers should not consume the recalled products described below.

This recall was triggered by findings by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) during its investigation into a foodborne illness outbreak. The CFIA is conducting a food safety investigation, which may lead to the recall of other products. If other high-risk products are recalled, the CFIA will notify the public through updated Food Recall Warnings.

Recalled products

Brand Name//Common Name//Size//Code(s) on Product//UPC

Janes//Pub Style Chicken Burgers – Uncooked Breaded Chicken Burgers//800 g//2018 MA 12//0 69299 12491 0

Janes//Pub Style Snacks Popcorn Chicken – Uncooked Breaded Chicken Cutlettes//800 g//2018 MA 15//0 69299 12542 9

The agency said frozen raw breaded chicken products may look pre-cooked, but they contain raw poultry and must be cooked correctly.

Been there, done that.

As we found back in 2007, when preparing frozen foods, adolescents are less likely than adults to wash their hands and are more susceptible to cross-contaminating raw foods while cooking.

“While half of the adults we observed washed their hands after touching raw chicken, none of the adolescents did,” said Casey Jacob, a food safety research assistant at Kansaas State. “The non-existent hand washing rate, combined with certain age-specific behaviors like hair flipping and scratching in a variety of areas, could lead directly to instances of cross-contamination compared to the adults.”

Food safety isn’t simple, and instructions for safe handling of frozen chicken entrees or strips are rarely followed by consumers despite their best intentions, said Doug Powell, K-State associate professor of food safety who led the study.

As the number and type of convenience meal solutions increases — check out the frozen food section of a local supermarket — the researchers found a need to understand how both adults and adolescents are preparing these products and what can be done to enhance the safety of frozen foods.

In 2007, K-State researchers developed a novel video capture system to observe the food preparation practices of 41 consumers – 21 primary meal preparers and 20 adolescents – in a mock domestic kitchen using frozen, uncooked, commercially available breaded chicken products. The researchers wanted to determine actual food handling behavior of these two groups in relation to safe food handling practices and instructions provided on product labels. Self-report surveys were used to determine whether differences exist between consumers’ reported food handling practices and observed behavior.

The research appeared in the November 2009 issue of the British Food Journal. In addition to Jacob and Powell, the authors were: Sarah DeDonder, K-State doctoral student in pathobiology; Brae Surgeoner, Powell’s former graduate student; Benjamin Chapman, an assistant professor at North Carolina State University and Powell’s former graduate student; and Randall Phebus, K-State professor of animal science and industry.

Beyond the discrepancy between adult and adolescent food safety practices, the researchers also found that even when provided with instructions, food preparers don’t follow them. They may not have even seen them or they assume they know what to do.

“Our results suggest that while labels might contain correct risk-reduction steps, food manufacturers have to make that information as compelling as possible or it will be ignored,” Chapman said.

They also found that observational research using discreet video recording is far more accurate than self-reported surveys. For example, while almost all of the primary meal preparers reported washing hands after every instance in which they touched raw poultry, only half were observed washing hands correctly after handling chicken products in the study.

Powell said that future work will examine the effectiveness of different food safety labels, messages and delivery mechanisms on consumer behavior in their home kitchens.

 Self-reported and observed behavior of primary meal preparers and adolescents during preparation of frozen, uncooked, breaded chicken products

01.nov.09

British Food Journal, Vol 111, Issue 9, p 915-929

Sarah DeDonder, Casey J. Jacob, Brae V. Surgeoner, Benjamin Chapman, Randall Phebus, Douglas A. Powell

http://www.emeraldinsight.com/Insight/viewContentItem.do;jsessionid=6146E6AFABCC349C376B7E55A3866D4A?contentType=Article&contentId=1811820

Abstract:

Purpose – The purpose of the present study was to observe the preparation practices of both adult and young consumers using frozen, uncooked, breaded chicken products, which were previously involved in outbreaks linked to consumer mishandling. The study also sought to observe behaviors of adolescents as home food preparers. Finally, the study aimed to compare food handler behaviors with those prescribed on product labels.

Design/methodology/approach – The study sought, through video observation and self-report surveys, to determine if differences exist between consumers’ intent and actual behavior.

Findings – A survey study of consumer reactions to safe food-handling labels on raw meat and poultry products suggested that instructions for safe handling found on labels had only limited influence on consumer practices. The labels studied by these researchers were found on the packaging of chicken products examined in the current study alongside step-by-step cooking instructions. Observational techniques, as mentioned above, provide a different perception of consumer behaviors.

Originality/value – This paper finds areas that have not been studied in previous observational research and is an excellent addition to existing literature.

Blame the consumer: India-style

Posted on by
Reply

Sindhu Bhattacharya of First Post reports the Indian Railways has blamed the passengers of Tejas Express for falling sick after eating food served on board.

Yes, without batting an eyelid, the world’s largest transporter has thought it fit to shrug off the embarrassment of having two dozen passengers down with food poisoning by conveniently saying their own doings – and the food that they were carrying – is to blame for the fiasco.

According to media reports, some of which quote a report by a three-member Central Railway Enquiry Committee, some children vomiting inside one coach could also be the culprits. Though how would 24 passengers suffer food poisoning if some kids threw up, remains a mystery.

Specially, since the kids who threw up were all in one coach, according to an IRCTC official we spoke to. This official also confirmed that passengers who fell sick were in different coaches, not all were in the same coach as the kids. Besides vomiting children, the Railways also wants to pin the blame on some fish that a group of Kolkatans was reportedly carrying, which stank, lead the kids to vomit and thereby somehow induced food poisoning in two dozen passengers.

This DNApiece is headlined “Not bad eggs or other food items, Hilsa caused food poisoning on Tejas Express” and goes on to say that in the report (on the food poisoning incident), the Central Railway has asserted “there was nothing wrong with the breakfast served to passengers. It has found that smell from stale fish had caused some children to vomit, triggering a similar response from other passengers. Some were taken ill after they consumed the fish.” It is not clear if the paper was in possession of the report or the entire piece has been strung together on source-based information. It is also not clear why anyone would carry stale fish, more than a fortnight old.

The Hindusays the samples collected for testing after the food poisoning incident were all packaged food items including soup powder, cake and mango punch. “However, the Railway authorities didn’t test the sample of the omelette that reportedly had a foul smell, as per its own inquiry report.” Why the omlettes or eggs were not tested is not known. The Hindu report goes on to add from the enquiry report of the Railways that “a few passengers complained of slightly different smell from omelette served to them. Quality of omelette may be ensured while serving.”

Australia still sucks at going public: Salmonella outbreak sickened 100 in March, shows up in annual report yesterday

Posted on by
Reply

In early March, 2017, more than 100 people reported becoming sick after dining at Ricardo’s Cafe in Canberra.

The outbreak was briefly noted in media accounts – only because so many people took to facebook – and then disappeared from public discussion.

Until yesterday.

According to ACT Health’s annual report there was a “disturbing” salmonella outbreak linked to Ricardo’s Cafe earlier this year.

Daniella White of The Age reports Ricardo’s was listed in the ACT Health report. 

None of the food outlets have faced prosecution, but ACT Health said it would provide reports on all three cases to the ACT Director of Public Prosecutions.

The biggest outbreak was associated with where 100 people reported suffering from gastroenteritis with 75 confirmed cases of Salmonella.

Of the confirmed cases 19 people were hospitalised, ACT Health said.

A second outbreak of Salmonella was also investigated about the same time with four confirmed salmonella infections from people who reported eating at Central Cafe in Gungahlin between January 30 and February 2.

Both cafes were found to have flaws in their food handling processes and procedures and forced to temporarily close.

Ricardo’s Cafe’s owner previously stated salmonella had been found on a dish cloth and tea towel in the cafe.

ACT Health said both cafes have been inspected since the outbreaks and found to be compliant.

A third Salmonella outbreak investigation was conducted in February and March, with 11 cases where people ate at the same restaurant over a five week period.

Several inspections of the premises did not identify any issues and the source of that outbreak remains unknown, ACT Health said.

It declined to identify the food outlet given it was found to be compliant and could not be held responsible for the outbreak.

An ACT Health spokesman said any foodborne outbreak was taken seriously by the Health Protection Service.

Associate professor Martyn Kirk, from ANU’s College of Health and Medicine said the food service industry had a responsibility to make sure it handled food safely and avoided high risk foods, such as raw eggs and improperly cured foods.

Going public: Early disclosure of food risks for the benefit of public health

Mar.17

NEHA, Volume 79.7, Pages 8-14

Benjamin Chapman, Maria Sol Erdozaim, Douglas Powell

http://www.neha.org/node/58904

Often during an outbreak of foodborne illness, there are health officials who have data indicating that there is a risk prior to notifying the public. During the lag period between the first public health signal and some release of public information, there are decision makers who are weighing evidence with the impacts of going public. Multiple agencies and analysts have lamented that there is not a common playbook or decision tree for how public health agencies determine what information to release and when. Regularly, health authorities suggest that how and when public information is released is evaluated on a case-by-case basis without sharing the steps and criteria used to make decisions. Information provision on its own is not enough. Risk communication, to be effective and grounded in behavior theory, should provide control measure options for risk management decisions. There is no indication in the literature that consumers benefit from paternalistic protection decisions to guard against information overload. A review of the risk communication literature related to outbreaks, as well as case studies of actual incidents, are explored and a blueprint for health authorities to follow is provided.