‘Vomit-like’ Australian $5 note unveiled

Posted on April 13, 2016 by Douglas Powell

It may be the smallest-denominated Australian dollar banknote, but a new design for the Aus$5 bill attracted an outsized amount of criticism when it was unveiled Tuesday, with detractors calling it “hideous” and “like vomit.”

The note, which will replace its more bland predecessor from September 1, features a yellow Prickly Moses wattle flower and a colourful Eastern Spinebill native bird.

“Each banknote in the new series will depict a different species of Australian wattle and a native bird within a number of the elements,” Reserve Bank of Australia governor Glenn Stevens said in a statement.

“The designs are the culmination of a process of extensive consultation with subject-matter experts and the cash-handling industry, as well as qualitative research involving focus groups.”

But critics — from social media users to bird-lovers — were quick to express their disdain.

“Our new fivers look like vomit,” one user wrote on Twitter, while another quipped: “A thousand monkeys with a thousand versions of Photoshop could never come up with something as hideous as the new Australian $5 note.”

Food fraud: Is that really oregano? Is it? Is it?

Posted on April 7, 2016 by Douglas Powell

Herbs are about the only thing I can grow that aren’t eaten by birds, possums and skinks.

Except when the cats decide to self-bathe in the wonderful aroma of my herbs, when someone lets them out onto the piece of concrete substituting for a back yard.

Seven of the 12 dried oregano samples sampled by Choice Australia contained other ingredients, including olive and sumac leaves.

Last year a study reported that 25% of dried oregano samples in the UK were adulterated. Concerned that Australian consumers might be affected by the same issue, CHOICE decided to carry out a spot check on the authenticity of oregano being sold here. We bought a selection of dried oregano products from supermarkets, grocers and delis in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth – 12 different brands in total – and had a single sample of each product analysed.

Shockingly, the results of a unique screening test for oregano adulteration showed that of the 12 samples, only five were 100% oregano. The other seven – from brands Master of Spices, Hoyt’s, Stonemill (Aldi), Spice & Co, Menora, Spencers and G Fresh – contained ingredients other than oregano, including olive leaves (in all seven samples) and sumac leaves (in two samples). Ingredients other than oregano made up between 50% and 90% of the adulterated samples.

It’s important to note that we tested just one sample of a single batch from each brand, so the results aren’t necessarily representative of each of those individual brands and companies’ whole range of oregano products.

Over 100 sickened, Chin Chin owners fined over $100K in Australia

Posted on April 4, 2016 by Douglas Powell

Over a year after more than 100 people were sickened with Salmonella after consuming deep fried ice cream batter containing raw eggs, former owners of Chin Chin Chinese restaurant in Springwood, south of Brisbane, have been prosecuted.

Mr Jing Wen Zheng and Ms Soc Kien Taing last week pleaded guilty, in the Beenleigh Magistrates Court, to three charges each of selling unsafe food to patrons of Chin Chin Chinese Restaurant on 3, 4 and 5 January 2015.

They have been fined $60,000 in total for the offences and ordered to pay $41,914 in total for costs of laboratory analyses and $1,000 in total for professional costs.

Metro South Public Health Unit environmental health manager, Mr Greg Shillig, said the action was the result of numerous complaints of foodborne illnesses following the consumption of food at the premises.

“The sale of this unsafe food caused laboratory-confirmed Salmonellosis in 100 of the 138 individuals who were ill, with the same molecular strain found not only in the food, but also on cleaning cloths, food preparation surfaces and other surfaces throughout the kitchen,” Mr Shillig said.

“This indicated significant cross contamination because of poor handling and hygiene standards.

“This particular outbreak placed a significant cost burden on local hospital emergency departments, including Logan Hospital, which set up a specific treatment ward for patients who dined at the restaurant.”

Mr Shillig said that, in response to this food poisoning outbreak, the Logan City Council cancelled the food business licence for Chin Chin Chinese Restaurant.

Lowering loads on the farm: Australia still has an egg problem

Posted on April 3, 2016 by Douglas Powell

Introduction: Salmonellosis is a significant public health problem, with eggs frequently identified as a food vehicle during outbreak investigations.

Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium and Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis are the two most frequently identified causes of egg-associated disease in industrialized countries. In Australia, a comprehensive review of egg-associated outbreaks has not been previously undertaken.

Methods: Using a national register of foodborne outbreaks, we undertook a descriptive review of egg-associated outbreaks between 2001 and 2011. Included in our review was additional detail from the findings of trace back investigations conducted to the farm level. Evidence classifications were developed and applied to each outbreak based on descriptive and analytical epidemiology, food safety investigations, and microbiological testing of clinical, food, and trace back-derived samples.

Results: Over the study period, the proportion of foodborne Salmonella outbreaks linked to eggs increased significantly (p < 0.001). In total, 166 outbreaks were identified, with 90% caused by Salmonella Typhimurium. The majority of outbreaks were linked to commercial food providers, with raw egg use the major contributing factor. These events resulted in more than 3200 cases, more than 650 hospitalizations, and at least 4 deaths. Fifty-four percent of investigations used analytical epidemiology, food microbiology, and trace back microbiology to demonstrate links between human illness and eggs. Trace back investigations identified S. enterica indistinguishable from outbreak-associated clinical or food samples on 50% of sampled egg farms.

Conclusion: Effective control of egg-associated salmonellosis remains a challenge in Australia, with Salmonella Typhimurium dominating as the causative serotype in outbreak events. Although outbreaks predominantly occur in the settings of restaurants, the high recovery rate of indistinguishable Salmonella on epidemiologically implicated egg farms suggests that further efforts to minimize infection pressure at the primary production level are needed in Australia.

Salmonella Typhimurium and Outbreaks of Egg-Associated Disease in Australia, 2001 to 2011

Foodborne Pathogens and Disease; March 2016; DOI: 10.1089/fpd.2015.2110

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/299515711_Salmonella_Typhimurium_and_Outbreaks_of_Egg-Associated_Disease_in_Australia_2001_to_2011

‘Something on the bus’ Gastro outbreak at Australian school camp

Posted on April 1, 2016 by Douglas Powell

Whyalla Town Primary School students have been affected by a gastro outbreak while at an Adelaide Hills School Camp yesterday evening.

Between 15-20 students were affected, with two girls and one boy taken to the Women’s and Children’s hospital by emergency services.

Close to 60 Year 6 and 7 students from Whyalla Town Primary were attending the four-day camp.

Albury Park principal David Doherty said two of the children were hospitalised because they were not able to keep down anti-vomiting medication and needed fluids, while the other was an asthmatic.

“I would have to praise the work done by the teachers, under pressure they did a tremendous job at managing the incident,” Mr Doherty said.

Mr Doherty said a bus driver on the camp had also become ill, which could be linked to a possible cause.

“I would be hesistant to say, but it’s possible there was something on that bus which could have contributed,” he said.

Aus/NZ health types stand strong for safe milk

Posted on March 30, 2016 by Douglas Powell

A campaign to legalize raw cow’s milk has found Far North Queensland support but health authorities have warned it is unfit for human consumption.

Tablelands dairy farmers have been drinking milk straight from the vat all their lives and believe the unpasteurised product could be safely sold to the public if regulated properly.

Chief Health Officer Dr Jeannette Young has warned raw milk isn’t fit for human consumption.

“People who consume unpasteurized milk are at increased risk of infection due to dangerous bacteria such as salmonella, E. coli and listeria, which are capable of causing severe illness and potentially death,” she said.

“All unpasteurised milk products in Australia are required to be labelled with a statement to the effect that the product has not been pasteurized and is not for human consumption.”

Raw milk is sold as bath milk at health stores such as The Healthy Hub in Cairns, where a two-litre bottle fetches $11.50.

Meanwhile, New Zealand food safety minister Jo Goodhew is making no apologies for tough new regulations for raw milk producers.

Mrs. Goodhew said new rules simply brought the milk into line with other products being sold to the public for consumption, and aimed to keep people safe.

“It does only put these producers on a par with other food producers who sell high-risk products such as, for instance, shellfish.”

‘There’s a lot of ignorance’ S. Australian dairy farmers lead renewed push to legalize raw milk

Posted on March 28, 2016 by Douglas Powell

Raw milk producers are making a renewed push to legislate the sale of unpasteurised milk.

“There’s a lot of ignorance. People don’t understand the facts about raw milk and how it can be done well,” raw milk dairy farmer Mark Tyler said.

Selling raw milk is currently illegal in Australia, but farmers can drink their own milk.

The Tyler family, who farm at Willunga Hill, about an hour out of Adelaide, now supply the niche product to about 700 investors in South Australia.

Raw milk is a premium product and sells for at least three times the farm-gate milk price.

“We’re just providing an alternative rather than dairy farmers being locked in as slaves for the big corporations,” Mr Tyler said.

Working within the legislation has not been easy, with authorities charging Mr Tyler for selling raw milk illegally.

After an appeal to the Supreme Court a mistrial was declared, and a new trial will begin later this year.

“In 15 years of testing, we’ve never had a pathogen in our milk,” Mr Tyler said.

But authorities say raw milk poses a health risk, especially to children.

A Victorian child died in 2014 after drinking raw milk marketed as bath milk, and in that state a bittering agent is now added to discourage consumption.

The regulator, Food Standards Australia and New Zealand (FSANZ), said raw milk was more likely to contain deadly bacteria like E. coli, salmonella and listeria.

Salmonella increases in warmer Adelaide weather

Posted on March 26, 2016 by Douglas Powell

Changing trends in foodborne disease are influenced by many factors, including temperature.

Globally and in Australia, warmer ambient temperatures are projected to rise if climate change continues. Salmonella spp. are a temperature-sensitive pathogen and rising temperature can have a substantial effect on disease burden affecting human health. We examined the relationship between temperature and Salmonella spp. and serotype notifications in Adelaide, Australia.

Time-series Poisson regression models were fit to estimate the effect of temperature during warmer months on Salmonella spp. and serotype cases notified from 1990 to 2012. Long-term trends, seasonality, autocorrelation and lagged effects were included in the statistical models. Daily Salmonella spp. counts increased by 1·3% [incidence rate ratio (IRR) 1·013, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1·008–1·019] per 1 °C rise in temperature in the warm season with greater increases observed in specific serotype and phage-type cases ranging from 3·4% (IRR 1·034, 95% CI 1·008–1·061) to 4·4% (IRR 1·044, 95% CI 1·024–1·064).

We observed increased cases of S. Typhimurium PT9 and S. Typhimurium PT108 notifications above a threshold of 39 °C. This study has identified the impact of warm season temperature on different Salmonella spp. strains and confirms higher temperature has a greater effect on phage-type notifications. The findings will contribute targeted information for public health policy interventions, including food safety programmes during warmer weather.

The effect of temperature on different Salmonella serotypes during warm seasons in a Mediterranean climate city, Adelaide, Australia

Milazzo, L. C. Giles, Y. Zhang, A. P. Koehler, J. E. Hiller and P. Bi

Epidemiology and Infection, 144, pp 1231-1240

http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=10250399&utm_source=Issue_Alert&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=HYG

Australia to pasteurize macadamia nuts

Posted on March 15, 2016 by Douglas Powell

A macadamia processing plant near Lismore has cracked a world-first for nut treatment.

The pasteurisation machine at the Alphadale company MPC reduces levels of micro-organisms through non-chemical methods.

“The pasteuriser treats food in a way that reduces the levels of potentially pathogenic micro-organisms that may be present,” general manager of MPC, Stephen Lee, said.

“The pasteuriser that we are using uses non-chemical treatment, so it is only using a combination of heat, steam and atmospheric pressure on the macadamia kernel,” he said.

It took three years of researching equipment to settle on the new technology that cost $1.7 million.

Mr Lee said the system would reduce the need for product recalls over health concerns such as salmonella.

“We’re the first processor in the world that has installed a machine that is capable of achieving a 5-log reduction of salmonella on macadamia kernel,” Mr Lee said.

‘They never disappoint’ Australian bakery reopens after 151 sickened in Salmonella outbreak

Posted on March 13, 2016 by Douglas Powell

Seven weeks after dodgy chicken schnitzel and pork rolls landed 27 people in hospital, Sylvania’s popular Box Village Bakery reopened today and the message from locals was a resounding ‘welcome back’.

Returning regulars turned out to offer their support to the family-owned business, shut down by the NSW Food Authority in the wake of the infamous salmonella outbreak in January.

As many as 150 people were struck down with food poisoning, resulting in the owner leaving an apology note on the front door of the business before closing temporarily.

One former regular, Sylvania local Alison Banks, said she chose to return to the shop today to reassure the operators they were accepted among “most” in the area.

“I’m not even here to buy anything I just wanted to tell them that they have our support,” Mrs Banks said.

“I had a friend who ended up in hospital and I can understand why they might not want to come back but think overall this is a business that is really loved.

“The food is great. It’s always looked clean to me. They will certainly have my support.”

Sylvania’s Jack Schilling and Jarrod Dwyer — both 17 — said they had been monitoring the shop since its closure in anticipation of returning for their famous chicken schnitzel roll.

“They never disappoint,” Schilling said.

Clearly not everyone is a fan however, with one man slowing down in his car to shout “salmonella” from his vehicle before speeding off.

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