Tag Archives: Cheese

No raw milk or sprouts for Santa

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There are now 50 people confirmed sick from salmonella in sprouts served with Jimmy John’s sandwiches in parts of Illinois, the raw milk cheesemaker in Washington state has shuttered her doors after making at least 8 sick with E. coli O157:H7, and a judge in Minnesota has ruled that Minnesota raw milk pusher Michael Hartmann was the source of an outbreak of E. coli O157:H7, and that that embargoed food items on the farm must be destroyed.

That’s a long-winded way to say, no sprouts or raw milk for Santa this year, like we did in this animation going back to 2005.
  

Cooking Pizza to 165F

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As we all recover from the flu, our appetites are only mediocre. In the spirit of things, I cooked an Archer Farms spinach and goat cheese pizza for dinner tonight. I added olives because that’s one of the few things Sorenne currently loves. When looking at the cooking time and temp I noticed detailed directions that seem straight from this blog:

"For food safety, cook to an internal temperature of 165F as measured with a food thermometer.

Ovens vary: adjust baking time accordingly. Refrigerate or discard leftovers immediately."

This prompted me to play 100 questions with Doug, which he enjoys.

Me: "There’s no meat on this pizza. Is 165 the temperature for killing salmonella?" 

Doug: "Yes."

Me: "How do I put a thermometer in a pizza?"

Doug: "Do you think mere mortals know where to put it? Why don’t you try it?"

So I did (exactly as pictured). After cooking the pizza at 400F for about 18 minutes, I took it out and tried to eye the thickest part. Then I tried to put the thermometer in somewhat sideways being careful not to poke through the other side. To take the picture, I had to prop the thermometer on my spatula. The process made a big gash in my pizza toppings and the cheese stuck like glue on the thermometer, but it was easy to see the pizza was well above 165F.

The pizza was tasty but the outside crust overly crunchy and the inner crust still a bit soggy. Sorenne picked off the olives and ate them all, and I enjoyed a Boulevard Nutrcracker Seasonal Ale with mine. 

E. coli O157:H7 survives long past 60 days in manufacture and aging of gouda; more evidence

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D’Amico et al., report in the current Journal of Food Protection “that the 60-day aging requirement alone is insufficient to completely eliminate levels of viable E. coli O157:H7 in Gouda or stirred-curd Cheddar cheese manufactured from raw milk contaminated with low levels of this pathogen.”

Bet Costco would have liked to know that before the outbreak linked to Gouda that has sickened at least 37 people in five U.S. states.

The complete abstract is below.

Behavior of Escherichia coli O157:H7 during the manufacture and aging of gouda and stirred-curd cheddar cheeses manufactured from raw milk
01.dec.10
Journal of Food Protection
D’Amico, Dennis J.; Druart, Marc J.; Donnelly, Catherine W.
http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/iafp/jfp/2010/00000073/00000012/art00009
Abstract:
This study was conducted to examine the fate of Escherichia coli O157:H7 during the manufacture and aging of Gouda and stirred-curd Cheddar cheeses made from raw milk. Cheeses were manufactured from unpasteurized milk experimentally contaminated with one of three strains of E. coli O157:H7 at an approximate population level of 20 CFU/ml. Samples of milk, whey, curd, and cheese were collected for enumeration of bacteria throughout the manufacturing and aging process. Overall, bacterial counts in both cheese types increased almost 10-fold from initial inoculation levels in milk to approximately 145 CFU/g found in cheeses on day 1. From this point, counts dropped significantly over 60 days to mean levels of 25 and 5 CFU/g in Cheddar and Gouda, respectively. Levels of E. coli O157:H7 fell and stayed below 5 CFU/g after an average of 94 and 108 days in Gouda and Cheddar, respectively, yet remained detectable after selective enrichment for more than 270 days in both cheese types. Changes in pathogen levels observed throughout manufacture and aging did not significantly differ by cheese type. In agreement with results of previous studies, our results suggest that the 60-day aging requirement alone is insufficient to completely eliminate levels of viable E. coli O157:H7 in Gouda or stirred-curd Cheddar cheese manufactured from raw milk contaminated with low levels of this pathogen.
 

Carrefour recalls cheese cause of E. coli

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France-based Carrefour is recalling a batch of cheese type "Fourme d’Ambert," due to the presence of harmful bacteria, according to a statement released Wednesday.

Carrefour has conducted self-checks on these cheeses sold under the brand cutting Carrefour Selection, and discovered E. coli.

These products were sold between October 29 and November 30, 2010, and to date, no consumer complaints have been reported.

This bacterium can cause in the week following its consumption, severe gastroenteritis, which may be followed by severe renal complications in young children.

That makes it sound like it’s E. coli O157:H7 or some other shiga-toxin producing E. coli.
 

Listeria and cheesemaking are often together

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The New York Times reports this morning that listeria can pose special challenges for artisan cheesemakers. Many make their cheese right on the farm, where the bad bacteria are right outside the cheese room door (or inside – dp). And small producers often lack the safety training and resources available at bigger companies.

For example, Sharon McCool got a shock last year as she prepared to begin selling the first batch of cheese she had made from milk produced at her family’s organic dairy, Rosecrest Farm, in Chehalis, Wash. State inspectors told her the Swiss cheese she had labored over for months was contaminated with listeria.

Tests showed that the bacteria was contained in a mixture of wine, water and salt, called a smear, that Ms. McCool had been brushing on her cheese each day as it aged. Without knowing it, she was dosing the cheese with listeria.

Ms. McCool threw out 900 pounds of cheese, changed some of her practices, got rid of the smear and started over.

Ms. McCool and her husband, Gary, have for years operated a dairy, where sanitation is paramount, so she thought she was well versed in food safety. But she now sees that she had overlooked some obvious pitfalls.

Before, Ms. McCool said, she had been so proud of her new business that she had often showed visitors around, possibly introducing listeria through their shoes or clothing.

Now, visitors are kept out. “Pretty much everything is really a whole lot stricter,” Ms. McCool said.

The number of small-scale, artisan cheesemakers has boomed in recent years but little or no formal training is required. Safety rules and enforcement also vary from state to state.

Soft cheeses — including brie, mozzarella and queso fresco — are more likely to become contaminated with listeria because they have a relatively high moisture content and low acidity, creating a more hospitable environment for the bacteria. In addition, listeria grows well at low temperatures, so even it can thrive even in a refrigerator.

The F.D.A. said it is inspecting both raw-milk and pasteurized cheese facilities for listeria, and recalls this year have been for both types of cheeses.

The agency also said it was reviewing the aging rules in light of evidence that the 60-day period might not be effective.
 

Health officials confirm E. coli in cheese samples

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The New Mexico Department of Health has confirmed an outbreak strain of E. coli O157:H7 in an intact sample of cheese sold at Costco stores.

The Alamogordo Daily News and Associated Press say the outbreak strain had been isolated at other laboratories in already opened packages of cheese, but this is the first confirmation from an intact cheese sample.

The findings confirm what scientists have found in the past: 60-days don’t mean much when the cheese is made from unpasteurized or raw milk (see abstract below; thanks Carl).

The Bravo Farms Dutch Style Raw Milk Gouda Cheese was offered for sale and for in-store tasting between Oct. 5 and Nov. 1 at Costco stores in Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada and the San Diego, Calif., area.

Health officials say at least 37 people from five states have become sick with E. coli since mid-October. Cases in New Mexico include a 41-year-old man, a 7-year-old girl from Bernalillo County and a 4-year-old boy from Valencia County who are all recovering. Arizona has 19 cases reported, Colorado has 10, California has 3 and Nevada has two. Nationally there have been 15 reported hospitalizations, one case of hemolytic uremic syndrome and no deaths.

People who have any of the cheese should not eat it. People should return the cheese to the place of purchase or dispose of it in a closed plastic bag placed in a sealed trash can. This will prevent people or animals from eating it.

Survival of a five-strain cocktail of Escherichia coli O157:H7 during the 60-day aging period of cheddar cheese made from unpasteurized milk

May 2006

Journal of Food Protection, Volume 69, Number 5 pp. 990-998(9)

Schlesser, J.E.; Gerdes, R.; Ravishankar, S.; Madsen, K.; Mowbray, J.; Teo, A.Y.L.

Abstract:
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration Standard of Identity for Cheddar cheeses requires pasteurization of the milk, or as an alternative treatment, a minimum 60-day aging at ‰¥2°C for cheeses made from unpasteurized milk, to reduce the number of viable pathogens that may be present to an acceptable risk. The objective of this study was to investigate the adequacy of the 60-day minimum aging to reduce the numbers of viable pathogens and evaluate milk subpasteurization heat treatment as a process to improve the safety of Cheddar cheeses made from unpasteurized milk. Cheddar cheese was made from unpasteurized milk inoculated with 101 to 105 CFU/ml of a five-strain cocktail of acid-tolerant Escherichia coli O157:H7. Samples were collected during the cheese manufacturing process. After pressing, the cheese blocks were packaged into plastic bags, vacuum sealed, and aged at 7°C. After 1 week, the cheese blocks were cut into smaller-size uniform pieces and then vacuum sealed in clear plastic pouches. Samples were plated and enumerated for E. coli O157:H7. Populations of E. coli O157:H7 increased during the cheese-making operations. Population of E. coli O157:H7 in cheese aged for 60 and 120 days at 7°C decreased less than 1 and 2 log, respectively. These studies confirm previous reports that show 60-day aging is inadequate to eliminate E. coli O157:H7 during cheese ripening. Subpasteurization heat-treatment runs were conducted at 148°F (64.4°C) for 17.5 s on milk inoculated with E. coli O157:H7 at 105 CFU/ml. These heat-treatment runs resulted in a 5-log E. coli O157: H7 reduction.

Cheese and food safety risk

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I’d never heard of Fairway cause I’m not much of a New Yorker, but it is apparently “one of Manhattan’s culinary meccas.”

Coincidentally, a barfblog.com reader e-mailed to say she was “shopping at her local Fairway and noticed a sign lauding both the flavor and the safety of raw milk cheese — also trashing pasteurization a little. I spoke to the cheese supervisor about the danger of misleading people and he was quite pleasant about it, considering.”

I don’t have a picture of the sign, nor access to a local Fairway (in Manhattan, Kansas) but the stagecoach has been delivering fancier cheeses to some of the bigger retailers in the area, so I went out to ask a few questions.

This matters because, as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control reported last week, the number of people sick with E. coli O157:H7 from consuming Bravo Farms Dutch Style Gouda Cheese – made from unpasteurized milk and offered through a Costco cheese sampler in several states—has risen to 37, including 15 hospitalizations.

As part of the investigation, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration sampled other cheeses sold through Costco and found a different strain of E. coli O157:H7 in an unopened package of Mauri Gorgonzola cheese. No one’s sick that anyone knows of from this cheese, but bugs can be anywehere.

So what’s a shopper to do?

Contamination with dangerous microorganisms, especially listeria and E. coli O157:H7, can happen in cheese in made from raw or pasteurized milk. Based on consumption levels, I’m guessing there’s a higher level of outbreaks in cheese made from raw milk, but that would require a lot of analysis on consumption data. Regardless, it was enough for two of France’s top lait cru Camembert producers, Lactalis and Isigny-Sainte-Mère, to announce in June 2007 they were switching to cheese made exclusively with heat-treated micro-filtered milk (not quite pasteurized but still an affront to purists).

At the time, Lactilis’ spokesperson, Luc Morelon said, “I don’t want to risk sending any more children to hospital. It’s as simple as that."

Cheese made from raw milk – domestic and imported – is available in the U.S., including supermarkets in Manhattan (Kansas), but FDA stipulates such cheese must be aged for at least 60 days. The idea is acid and salt help destroy dangerous bugs.

But even the 60-day rule has come under question.

In July, 2008, Mansel Griffith of the University of Guelph, one of several experts who reviewed the status of raw milk cheese for the Canadian province of Quebec, told the Globe and Mail the 60-day limit had become arbitrary, since it is no longer a guarantee of destroying pathogens. Still, he believes raw-milk cheese continues to pose health-safety issues over potential pathogens.

John Sheehan, director of FDA’s division of plant and dairy food safety, told the N.Y. Times a year ago the 60-day aging requirement is no longer thought to be effective, and is currently under review.

Today I found out several raw milk cheeses were available at the local supermarket, but take a magnifying glass: I know I’m getting old, but even with my reading glasses I could barely make out the ingredients contained raw milk and that the cheese had been aged 60 days.

Some clarity would help.

33 sick in multistate outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 infections associated with cheese

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The U.S. Centers for Disease Control has issued an alert to consumers and health professionals about an outbreak of E.coli O157:H7 in five states: Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico and Nevada. Based on current information, there is a link with the consumption of one of several cheeses offered for sampling and sale at the “cheese road show” that was held at Costco Warehouses in these states. This cheese—Bravo Farms Dutch Style Gouda Cheese (Costco Item 40654) manufactured by Bravo Farms, Traver CA—was sold and offered as free samples for in-store tasting from October 5 to November 1.

Consumers who have any of this cheese should not eat it. Instead, they should return the cheese to the place of purchase or dispose of it in a closed plastic bag placed in a sealed trash can. This will prevent people or animals, including wild animals, from eating it.

Thirty-three persons infected with the outbreak strain of E. coli O157:H7 have been reported from five states since mid-October. The number of ill persons identified in each state with this strain is as follows: AZ (15), CA (3), CO (10), NM (3) and NV (2). There have been 15 reported hospitalizations, 1 case of hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), and no deaths.

This is a rare strain of E. coli O157:H7 that has never been seen before in the PulseNet database. PulseNet is the national subtyping network made up of state and local public health laboratories and federal food regulatory laboratories that performs molecular surveillance of foodborne infections.

E. coli outbreak linked to Costco cheese samplers; 25 sick

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In 2004, I spent a week at a cottage with a couple of my children in Eastern Ontario near Sandbanks Provincial Park on Lake Ontario. Lovely spot.

One rainy day, we toured around and ended up at a cheese shop. They produced the cheese in the factory at the back, and had a charming market outlet that seemed to trap tourists like bees on sap.

Upon entering the store, a sign declared, “HACCP – A food safety program; Hazard Analysis Critical Control Pont.” Cool. I asked one of the staff what it meant. She said she didn’t know. ??But beside the HACCP proclamation was a sign that read, “Public bathroom is out of order; for your convenience there is a blue Johnny on the spot behind the building.”?

No handwashing facilities or sanitizer. I watched people go to the porta potty and then come into the cheese shop and do what people do at quaint cheese shops: stick their unwashed hands into shared samples of curds (that’s one of my daughters looking disgusted in the middle, right, not because of the practice, but because I have to take pictures and be a food safety geek everywhere we go). HACCP really doesn’t mean much unless there is a culture of food safety amongst the employees and everyone involved in making a product, like cheese or deli meat.??

These public sampling stations can be cross-contamination nightmares. But the best hygiene won’t prevent food safety foul-ups when the product itself is contaminated.

Multiple sources are reporting tonight that Arizona and four other states reported cases of E. coli O157 in cheese products sold in Costco stores in October.

Twenty-five cases of Escherichia coli were confirmed by officials, 11 in Arizona lone, according to a statement issued Thursday by the Arizona Department of Health Services.

The outbreak appears to have been associated with cheese available for purchase at Costco "Cheese Road Shows," and Costco was working with state officials to remove the tainted product from its stores.

Early data from health officials suggests that Dutch-style Gouda cheese is the culprit. Costco is cooperating with the investigation: they have removed all suspect products from shelves and are notifying customers who purchased cheese from the road show.

A U.S. Food and Drug Administration press release states:]

• Bravo Farms Dutch Style Gouda cheese, (Costco item 40654) offered for sale and in cheese sampling events at Costco Wholesale Corporation (Costco) locations is preliminarily linked with an outbreak of E.coli O157:H7 infections.

• Consumers who have any of this cheese should not eat it. They should return the cheese to the place of purchase or dispose of it in a closed plastic bag and place in a sealed trash can to prevent people or animals, including wild animals, from eating it.

• Most people infected with E. coli O157:H7 develop diarrhea and abdominal cramps, but some illnesses may last longer and can be more severe. While most people recover within a week, some may develop a severe infection. Rarely, as symptoms of diarrhea improve, a type of kidney failure called hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) can occur; this can happen at any age but is most common in children under 5 years old and in older adults. People with HUS should be hospitalized immediately, as their kidneys may stop working and they may be at risk for other serious health problems.

• As of Thursday, November 4, 2010, 25 persons infected with the outbreak strain of E. coli O157:H7have been reported from five states since mid-October. The number of ill persons identified in each state with this strain is as follows: AZ (11), CA (1), CO (8), NM (3) and NV (2). There have been 9 reported hospitalizations, 1 possible case of hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), and no deaths.

Costco may need to check its suppliers. Again.
 

Disclosure of information, only for some recalls

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The CFIA announced yesterday that Le Belle de Jersey cheese may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. They claim that no illnesses have been reported, but we’ve all heard that one before.

The news release doesn’t include specific information regarding the affected product, like weight, lot number or locations where it was sold; information needed to avoid the tainted product.

Another product, also recalled yesterday, President’s Choice®Decadent Chocolate Chunk Cookies had a very different news release. The company responsible included all the necessary information to identify and avoid the product, which is not tainted with Listeria but contains metal pieces.

The reasons for recalling the products might be different but they both pose a threat to consumer’s health. So why the difference in disclosure of information between these recalls?

The CFIA should require specific information regarding recalled products so that there is no expanded health hazard alert informing how many people have gotten sick since the last health hazard alert release.