Mt Kisco Smokehouse recalls smoked salmon because of possible health risk

Mt Kisco Smokehouse of Mt Kisco, NY, is voluntarily recalling two types of smoked salmon because it has the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes.

listeria-mt-kisco-smokehouse-salmonProduct was distributed in New York and Connecticut through retail stores and restaurants between 9/6/2016 to 9/16/2016.

The whole product is packed in an unlabeled paper box and delivered to restaurants.  The sliced product is sold in a clear plastic package and labeled on the back with lot and use by date.

No illnesses have been reported to date in connection with this problem.

The potential for contamination was noted after routine testing by the FDA inspection revealed the presence of Listeria monocytogenes in floor drains and cracks in the floor.

Herring Salads recalled because of Listeria positives

SM Fish Corp. of Far Rockaway, NY, is voluntarily recalling OSSIE’S brand ready-to-eat Herring Salads because they have the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Although healthy individuals may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea, Listeria infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women.

ucm514138The recalled products were sold at the firm’s eight retail outlets located in New York and New Jersey.

The recalled products were packed in plastic deli containers with a UPC Code and “Best By” date codes of 7/21/16 through 08/20/16 (located on the bottom of the tub):

OSSIE’S PICKLED LOX DAIRY, NET WT. 8 OZ., UPC 739885114136;

OSSIE’S HERRING IN SOURCREAM, NET WT. 8 OZ., UPC 739885114174;

OSSIE’S TAAM SHABBOS HERRING, NET WT. 7 OZ., UPC 739885109057;

OSSIES’S STIGLITZ HERRING, NET WT. 7 OZ., UPC 739885109064;

OSSIE’S WASABI HERRING, NET WT. 7 OZ., UPC 739885109088;

OSSIE’S SWEDISH MATJES HERRING, NET WT. 7 OZ., UPC 739885109101;

OSSIE’S DUBLIN HERRING, NET WT. 7 OZ., UPC 739885109002;

OSSIE’S HONEY MUSTARD HERRING; NET WT. 7 OZ. 739885109019;

OSSIE’S PICKLED LOX & CREAM, NET WT. 8 OZ., UPC 739885104113;

OSSIE’S SHMALTZ HERRING, NET WT. 8 OZ., UPC 739885104182;

OSSIE’S ROMAN SHMALTZ HERRING, NET WT. 7 OZ., UPC 739885109026;

OSSIE’S PICKLED HERRING, NET WT. 8 OZ., UPC 739885104175;

OSSIE’S PICKLED HERRING CLEAR, NET WT. 8 OZ., UPC 739885104205;

OSSIE’S PICKLED LOX, NET WT. 8 OZ., UPC 739885104137.

No illnesses have been reported to date.

The recall was the result of sampling and inspectional findings by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). SM Fish Corp. has ceased production and distribution of products as the company and the FDA continue their investigation as to the cause of the problem.

Several sick, linked to Campylobacter at NY Burger & Beer Bash

Bacterial contamination was being blamed Monday for an outbreak of foodborne illness following the popular Burger & Beer Bash in Westchester County earlier this month.

The county Health Department said Monday that the campylobacter bacterium was to blame for the outbreak at the June 6 outdoor food festival burger.beerwestchester.13at the Kenisco Dam in Valhalla.

The bacterium was identified through tests on samples from several people who got sick at the event. The department did not specify exactly how many people were sickened.

But health officials have not determined the source of the bacteria, since most attendees ate food from many of the 30 different vendors at the event, the department said. The department has launched an investigation and has been interviewing people in an effort to trace the source.

The four-star roach

A cockroach appeared on the table of five diners at the super snazzy New York eatery, Jean Georges, Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s four-star kitchen and dining room on the first floor of 1 Central Park West.

“A woman at the table screamed and the whole restaurant went quiet,” said Lois Freedman, a spokeswoman for Mr. Vongerichten, who was not in the restaurant at the time.

Sam Sifton of the N.Y. Times reports that waiters and captains moved to the table with grim alacrity, said people who saw them whisk the aggrieved customers to a new table. … Champagne was brought to the table of the woman who had screamed, and further treats after that: an additional course was added to the restaurant’s three-course, $98 prix fixe dinner, and desserts, and dessert wine. The restaurant’s captain kept a close eye on the table. At least one other table received a round of free drinks as a way of thanking them for their forbearance.

Bring your own cockroach, although I would never recommend that, especially when Jean Georges received an inspection score of 23 from the city’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, which translates to a B.
 

Raw clams sicken 60 with campy in NY

The Onondaga County Health Department says 60 people have become ill because of raw clams served at an event at Hinerwadel’s Grove in North Syracuse.

The Health Department says so far, all of the illnesses have been linked to a clambake September 15th for the CNY Builders Exchange. Approximately 3,800 members attended that clambake.

The reported symptoms are related to campylobacter, a bacterial infection that causes diarrhea, cramps, and fever. The incubation period for the infection is usually two to five days, but it can last as long as 10 days. Symptoms can last up to two weeks.

The Health Department is asking that anyone who ate at the facility and became ill to call (315) 435-6607.


 

Kitchen confidential no more: sanitation grades will be good for New York diners and restaurateurs

So says Tim Zagat, co-founder and chief executive of Zagat Survey in this morning’s N.Y. Times, adding,

This system can only benefit the restaurant industry, and the health board has been eminently reasonable in what it proposes to do. What’s more, the public overwhelmingly favors the idea. In a recent survey by my company, 83 percent of respondents said that they would like to have grades posted. …

In essence, the New York plan merely makes routine health inspection results more transparent. The city has inspected restaurants for decades, but the results have been available only online or at the health department; now they will be displayed in the restaurant itself. Establishments that fail to get an A on the first inspection will be given a second examination within 30 days, giving them time to correct any failings found in the first go-around.

Quite simply, the inspection process is intended to keep us safe when dining out. … The restaurant association would do well to take its place at the table — and support the proposed grading system.