Fw: [BITES-L] bites July 14/10 -- II
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Date: Wed, 14 Jul 2010 11:02:14 -0500
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Subject: [BITES-L] bites July 14/10 -- II
bites July 14/10 -- II
Two children hospitalized with E. coli, maybe linked to INDIANA fair
Suspected salmonella poisoning closes WISCONSIN restaurant
UK: Stop the killer bug: Wrexham E.coli mum speaks out
UK: We will all be losers if the FSA is abolished
MISSOURI: KC health inspectors ensure eateries meet safety standards
UK: E. coli outbreak closes Hellingly nursery
US: AMI: Performance Standards should be based on sound science
INDONESIA: Setting the foundations for food safety policies
Studies on disinfection mechanism of electrolyzed oxidizing water on E. coli and Staphylococcus aureus
Antimicrobial effects of wine: separating the role of polyphenols, pH, ethanol, and other wine components
Detecting food- and waterborne viruses by surface-enhanced raman spectroscopy
Escherichia coli O157:H7 biofilm formation on romaine lettuce and spinach leaf surfaces reduces efficacy of irradiation and sodium hypochlorite washes
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Two children hospitalized with E. coli, maybe linked to INDIANA fair
14.jul.10
barfblog
Doug Powell
http://www.barfblog.com/blog/143098/10/07/14/two-children-hospitalized-e-coli-maybe-linked-indiana-fair
At least two children from Rush County are critically ill after getting E. coli poisoning, and health officials are now looking into whether the children got sick at the Rush County Fair.
Four-year-old Kathleen Ragan (right) is at Peyton Manning Children's Hospital in Indianapolis, undergoing dialysis for hemolytic-uremic syndrome. She's one of four reported cases of E. coli. Fox59 News has received reports that Kathleen along with three other children may have contracted the disease while attending the county fair.
Kathleen's mother says she did use hand sanitizer as she petted animals there, but her symptoms of fatigue, diarrhea and bloody stools started the day after the fair ended.
http://www.wishtv.com/dpp/health/e.coli-case-may-be-traced-back-to-rush-county-fair
http://www.wishtv.com/dpp/health/e.coli-case-may-be-traced-back-to-rush-county-fair
Suspected salmonella poisoning closes WISCONSIN restaurant
14.jul.10
barfblog
Doug Powell
http://www.barfblog.com/blog/143097/10/07/14/suspected-salmonella-poisoning-closes-wisconsin-restaurant
Officials with the Kenosha County Health Department have shut down a local restaurant after at least 10 people have been confirmed with salmonella poisoning.
The Kenosha News reports an official with the Kenosha County Health Department confirmed that it closed Baker Street Restaurant & Pub, 6208 Green Bay Road, but that official would not comment about why the restaurant was closed down.
However, Tom Stemple, an employee of Tricoli Restaurants, which owns Baker Street, said 10 to 18 people who ate at the restaurant were sick with salmonella and owner Lou Tricoli was contacting all of his Baker Street employees to get them tested, adding,
"He's gathering everyone together, trying to interview them to help find out the source of this. He's trying to sort things out so that he can help protect everyone —his employees and the public."
http://www.kenoshanews.com/news/suspected_salmonella_poisoning_closes_restaurant_12851369.html
UK: Stop the killer bug: Wrexham E.coli mum speaks out
13.jul.10
The Leader
Phil Robinson
http://www.leaderlive.co.uk/news/90704/stop-the-killer-bug-wrexham-e-coli-mum-speaks-out.aspx
A Wrexham mum who fought back from the brink of death after an E.coli outbreak has hit out at Assembly chiefs' handling of the killer bug.
Karen Morrisroe, 34, of Rhosnesni, was one of four people from the area struck down with the killer bug during an outbreak in Llay last July.
She battled for her life for several weeks, having to be separated from baby son Oliver for months while she was in hospital.
One year on from the terrifying ordeal she is back to health and working full-time again.
Now, as the anniversary of her nightmare approaches Karen has slammed ministers for failing to listen to a key report into the illness, and says 'lax' hygiene standards are putting others at risk.
She believes investment is the key to stopping other people suffering, and that the nation as a whole could learn from Wrexham's approach.
Karen said: "I don't think the Assembly government is doing enough to combat e.coli. Much more should be done to prevent anyone else having to suffer what I went through after contracting it last year. "
One of things which could help is the 'scores on the doors' system, which ranks food premises with stars from zero to five according to their hygiene standards. "
At the moment only Wrexham and Swansea have it and I know the Assembly government wants to see it spread across Wales. "
But it must also be made compulsory and not left to individual councils to decide whether to adopt it or not."
UK: We will all be losers if the FSA is abolished
14.jul.10
The Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/jul/14/fsa-abolish-food-safety-environment
Melanie Leech, Director general, Food and Drink Federation, writes that contrary to your article (Victory for food firms as safety watchdog axed, 12 July), we understand that no decision has been made about the future of the Food Standards Agency. Your story claimed that food manufacturers had been lobbying to close down the FSA. However, as the voice of UK food and drink manufacturing, the Food and Drink Federation has consistently supported the need for an independent, well-funded food safety regulator. The FSA has been highly effective in this role in the 10 years since its creation, not least in ensuring that consumer confidence in the food we eat has grown significantly. Were its independent role to be abolished, neither the industry nor the consumers would be the winners.
Jon Poole, Chief executive, Institute of Food Science & Technology, writes the demise of the FSA would be regarded by many as a loss – including the food industry itself. The Institute of Food Science & Technology, an independent professional body, has seen the FSA working closely with the industry over the past few years. The adversarial style of relationship suggested in your reports is neither accurate nor helpful. During its existence, the FSA has provided coherent strategy and direction on issues such as reductions in saturated fat and salt and in food-borne diseases such as campylobacter in chicken, as well as regulating food business operators. These are all still live issues and the functions of the FSA, in whatever form, will continue to be needed in the future. Very few in the sector would see its break-up as a positive step.
MISSOURI: KC health inspectors ensure eateries meet safety standards
13.jul.10
James A. Fussell
Kansas City Star
http://www.kansascity.com/2010/07/13/2079054/kc-health-inspectors-ensure-eateries.html
Stacie Duitsman has carried a thermometer and reminded everyone to wash their hands. for two years as a health inspector for the Kansas City Health Department.
Before you eat anything away from home — whether it's foie gras at a four-star restaurant or a burrito at the local Burp 'n' Go — it's a good bet that Duitsman, 28, or someone like her, has given the place the sanitary once-over.
Q. We understand you can't talk about specific places. But what's the most dangerous violation you've ever found?
A. Any critical violation can be dangerous. But the one that bothers me the most is improper hand washing. That's also the most common.
Q. Ever thought about having a system where you'd post a health grade on the front of each restaurant?
We don't have a grading system, but we do post all of our reports on the Internet. People can go to http://kcmo.org/health (click on "food inspection results" on the right side under "hot topics.")
Q. Are there places you won't go to because of what you've found in an inspection?
If they're open and operating, they're up to our standards.
Yeah, but aren't there places that just sort of skate by that make you say "not me"?
Yeah, I would say so. But I have full confidence in my co-workers that they are educating the employees and managers to ensure the facility is (safe).
Do restaurant owners hate to see you coming?
There are some restaurants that I make a little bit nervous. But generally, I am accepted.
What are the nastiest food-borne illnesses you're trying to prevent?
We have what we call the big five. Salmonella, E. coli, hepatitis A, shigella and norovirus.
How dangerous are they?
They can be deadly.
Has anybody in Kansas City died of these after eating out in the last few years?
Not that I'm aware of. It's probably because we have such a good team of health inspectors.
Q.Tell us what you look for in your inspections.
We ensure that people are handling food properly, that they are demonstrating the proper hygienic practices such as washing their hands, and we also assess the physical facilities to make sure everything is in good standing. We take temperatures of the food to make sure … it is safe. Also, we make sure to check that there are no sick employees, and verify that 80 percent of the staff has a food handler card.
Q. What's a food handler card?
It's a program we offer at the health department. Employees (who) handle food are taught the proper way to handle that food. Most everything we look for in the inspection people are taught in the class.
UK: E. coli outbreak closes Hellingly nursery
14.jul.10
Eastbourne Herald
http://www.eastbourneherald.co.uk/hailsham-news/E-coli-outbreak-closes-Hellingly.6418266.jp
A nursery has been temporarily shut down and deep cleaned after a toddler was found to have contracted a strain of the E. coli infection.
Health bosses said the Bunny Run nursery, in The Drive, Hellingly, was closed 'as a precautionary measure' and all children and staff were being tested for the infection.
Five other suspected cases of E. coli 0157 - three in nursery-age children and two in adults - are being investigated by the Health Protection Agency (HPA) and Wealden District Council's environmental health team.
The HPA said the possible source of the infection was yet to be established but a spokesperson said there were 'no wider area implications'.
As of yesterday (Tuesday July 13), one case had been confirmed while the other five, closely linked, were 'presumptive cases' but had not been confirmed by a laboratory.
US: AMI: Performance Standards should be based on sound science
14.jul.10
Cattle Network
http://www.cattlenetwork.com/AMI--Performance-Standards-Should-Be-Based-On-Sound-Science/2010-07-14/Article_Latest_News.aspx?oid=1158158&fid=CN-LATEST_NEWS_
Performance standards should be based on sound science, be achievable and have a significant and quantifiable positive impact on public health, something that has thus far not been accomplished, says AMI in comments submitted today in response USDA FSIS Docket No. FSIS-2009-0034: New Performance Standards for Salmonella and Campylobacter in Young Chickens and Turkey Slaughter Establishments.
"Indeed, publicly available data show the prevalence of Salmonella on raw meat and poultry products has been significantly reduced since the standards were implemented, but the incidence of salmonellosis in the human population show no quantifiable improvement during the same time period. The agency's belief that implementing stricter performance standards will decrease human illnesses is theoretical. The lack of improvement in human illness since the performance standards were fully implemented in 2000 does not support the agency's theory," AMI's comments state.
AMI urged FSIS to conduct a comprehensive scientific and technical review of the new performance standards for Salmonella and Campylobacter in young chickens and turkey to determine the impact of the revised standards on public health before they are implemented in federal establishments. Specifically, AMI encouraged the agency to examine why the Salmonella performance standards have not been successful in having a significant and quantifiable improvement of public health.
"AMI supports achievable performance standards based on sound science that significantly improve public health through quantifiable metrics," the comments conclude. "Standards that do not meet these criteria could place unnecessary hardships on businesses and may not be the best focus and application of food safety resources. The agency should understand the possible improvement and impact on food safety as measured by the HHS's Healthy People goals before proposing changes to the Salmonella performance standards and in the development of the Campylobacter performance standards."
INDONESIA: Setting the foundations for food safety policies
14.jul.10
The Jakarta Post
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2010/07/14/setting-foundations-food-safety-policies.html
Indroyono Soesilo, secretary to Coordinating Public Welfare Minister, writes with a population of about 240 million people, Indonesia continues to face major challenges in providing food security. For the past 40 years, the country has strived in efforts to create and achieve food resilience. For a country as vast and diverse as Indonesia, food security must be realized not only at the national level, but also at the local, household and individual levels.
Let us first look at the positive achievements. Currently, staple food crop production in Indonesia is progressing positively. Rice and corn productions have already achieved self sufficiency.
The country's current annual rice production is around 64 million tons per-year with annual growth of approximately 3.2 percent, while the corn production is around 18 million tons per year, with annual growth of approximately 10 percent.
In 2014 Indonesia has the ambition to achieve self-sufficiency in soy beans, with approximately one million tons of production; of sugar, with the production of 2.9 million tons; and of meat, with the production of 0.4 million tons.
With the deadline for the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) only five years away, the government has laid out four major agricultural targets.
First is the continuation of self-sufficiency on major food crops production; second, food diversification; third, improve value-added production, increase competitiveness and enhance exports; fourth, increase the farmers' standards of living.
There are at least four key foundations to achieve these goals:
First is lowering food prices for consumer across-the-board. This has been done by policies that promote the lowering or elimination of existing trade barriers.
In addition to help the poor, the government has introduced various subsidies for low quality foodstuffs in the poorest regions in Indonesia.
Greater food consumption and increased purchasing power have contributed to the average Indonesian per capita food availability growing from 1,726 calories per capita per day in 1961 to 2,890 calories in 2003 (FAO, 2009).
Second foundation is production. Agronomists have argued that increasing domestic production does not always increase food security, unless food prices are kept down and measures (policies) are in place to make such production economically efficient.
This may be the case for more highly developed states. But for Indonesia pumping production to the maximum levels is still a viable policy.
However, to make such a policy politically acceptable, it should be followed up by efforts to improve the efficiency of productions processes. We have also seen that subsidies for farmers, even though relatively economically inefficient, have been able to lower and keep stable food prices.
For Indonesia, growth in the agricultural sector coincided with the "Green Revolution" as seed and fertilizer technologies and substantial government subsidies allowed increased production through crop intensification.
The government prudent policies, mostly learning from the 1998 financial crisis has resulted in an overall economic growth for the past ten years.
Other macroeconomic policies such as trade deregulations and fiscal and monetary balances have attributed to the success of economic growth and more importantly poverty alleviation.
The last foundation is more trade-related. With an open-and-close policy, the government has been able to control imports on one hand and giving wider consumer choice on the other hand. This has also allowed for the lowering of food costs for the general population. Trade liberalizing policies and currency devaluation promoted a greater market-oriented economy and allowed Indonesia's tropical perennial crops to assert their comparative advantage
Even with such a strong foundation, problems remain. A huge population, climate change, land reform, and environmental degradation are just a few to mention.
Indonesia has recorded one of the fastest agricultural transformations in history, trailing only South Korea and Turkey, in shedding 27 percent of agriculture's share of GDP in 35 years (World Bank, 2008).
Incentives induced through the market reorientation of the mid-1980s and the currency devaluation and market liberalizing policies after the Asian financial crisis may have been the main productivity driver.
With greater income, Indonesians are increasingly urbanized and gains have been made in improving their food security. Looking at the policies Indonesia has put in place, it is a lesson learned that one can come out of poverty and achieve growth with resilient policies.
Studies on disinfection mechanism of electrolyzed oxidizing water on E. coli and Staphylococcus aureus
07.jul.10
Journal of Food Science
Xinping Zeng, Wenwei Tang, Guoqing Ye, Ting Ouyang, Lin Tian, Yaming Ni, and Ping Li
http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/123577080/abstract?CRETRY=1&SRETRY=0
ABSTRACT
Abstract: Suspension quantitative germicidal test showed that electrolyzed oxidizing water (EO water) was an efficient and rapid disinfectant. Disinfection rates towards E. coli (available chlorine concentration ACC: 12.40 mg/L) and Staphylococcus aureus (ACC: 37.30 mg/L) could reach 100% at 1 and 3 min, respectively. Disinfection mechanism of EO water was investigated at a molecular biological level by detecting a series of biochemical indices. The results showed that the dehydrogenase activities of E. coli and S. aureus decreased rapidly, respectively, at the rates of 45.9% and 32% in the 1st minute treatment with EO water. EO water also improved the bacterial membrane permeability, causing the rise of conductivities and the rapid leakages of intracellular DNA, K+, and proteins in 1 min. The leakages of DNA and K+ tended to slow down after about 1 min while those of proteins began to decrease a little after reaching the peak values. The sodium dodecyl sulfonate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) showed that EO water destroyed intracellular proteins. The protein bands got fainter and even disappeared as the treatment proceeded. EO water's effects on the bacterial ultrastructures were also verified by the transmission electronic microscopy (TEM) photos. The disinfection mechanism of EO water was composed of several comprehensive factors including the destruction of bacterial protective barriers, the increase of membrane permeability, the leakage of cellular inclusions, and the activity decrease of some key enzymes.
Practical Application: Large-scale communicable diseases have often occurred due to the infectious pathogenic microorganism. EO water is a novel environment-friendly disinfectant characterized by its high efficiency, broad spectrum, and no side effects. It has been greatly used in agriculture, food industry, and medicine. Our research lays the foundation for further research of EO water and we can predict that EO water will continue to be broadly used in daily life, health care, sanitation, and so on.
Antimicrobial effects of wine: separating the role of polyphenols, pH, ethanol, and other wine components
02.jun.10
Journal of Food Science
Natasa Boban, Marija Tonkic, Danijela Budimir, Darko Modun, Davorka Sutlovic, Volga Punda-Polic, and Mladen Boban
http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/123491434/abstract
ABSTRACT
Abstract: While the antimicrobial effectiveness of wine is well documented, relative contributions of the wine components to its antimicrobial activity is controversial. To separate the role of wine phenolics, ethanol, and pH from other wine constituents, the antimicrobial effects of intact wine were compared to that of phenols-stripped wine, dealcoholized wine, ethanol, and low pH applied separately and in combination, against 2 common foodborne pathogens, Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis and Escherichia coli. All samples were biochemically characterized with respect to their total phenolics and resveratrol content, antioxidant capacity, ethanol content, and pH. Antioxidative activity of the samples corresponded to their total phenolics content. Except for respective controls, pH and ethanol content were similar in all samples. The order of antibacterial activity of the samples was: intact wine > phenols-stripped wine > dealcoholized wine > combination of ethanol and low pH > low pH > ethanol. Separate application of ethanol or low pH showed negligible antibacterial activity while their combination showed synergistic effect. Antibacterial activity of the samples could not be related to their total phenolics and resveratrol content, antioxidant capacity, ethanol content, or pH. Our study indicates that antimicrobial activity of complex solutions such as intact wine cannot be exclusively attributed to its phenolic or nonphenolic constituents, nor can the antimicrobial activity of wine be predicted on the basis of its particular components.
Detecting food- and waterborne viruses by surface-enhanced raman spectroscopy
02.jun.10
Journal of Food Science
Cui Fan, Zhiqiang Hu, Lela K. Riley, Gregory A. Purdy, Azlin Mustapha, and Mengshi Lin
http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/123491430/abstract
ABSTRACT
Abstract: Food- and waterborne viruses pose serious health risks to humans and were associated with many outbreaks worldwide. Rapid, accurate, and nondestructive methods for detection of viruses are of great importance to protect public health. In this study, surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) coupled with gold SERS-active substrates was used to detect and discriminate 7 food- and waterborne viruses, including norovirus, adenovirus, parvovirus, rotavirus, coronavirus, paramyxovirus, and herpersvirus. Virus samples were purified and dialyzed in phosphate buffered saline (8 to 9 log PFU/mL) and then further diluted in deionized water for SERS measurement. After capturing the characteristic SERS spectral patterns, multivariate statistical analyses, including soft independent modeling of class analogy (SIMCA) and principal component analysis (PCA), were employed to analyze SERS spectral data for characterization and identification of viruses. The results show that SIMCA was able to differentiate viruses with and without envelope with >95% of classification accuracy, while PCA presented clear spectral data segregations between different virus strains. The virus detection limit by SERS using gold substrates reached a titer of 102.
Practical Application: SERS is a simple, rapid, and accurate method for detection of food- and waterborne viruses. Our results demonstrate that coupled with gold substrates, SERS was able to rapidly detect and discriminate among different food- and waterborne viruses, indicating that SERS can provide rapid, sensitive, and reproducible detection results with minimum sample preparation for virus detection.
Escherichia coli O157:H7 biofilm formation on romaine lettuce and spinach leaf surfaces reduces efficacy of irradiation and sodium hypochlorite washes
07.jul.10
Journal of Food Science
Brendan A. Niemira and Peter H. Cooke
http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/123577062/abstract
ABSTRACT
Abstract: Escherichia coli O157:H7 contamination of leafy green vegetables is an ongoing concern for consumers. Biofilm-associated pathogens are relatively resistant to chemical treatments, but little is known about their response to irradiation. Leaves of Romaine lettuce and baby spinach were dip inoculated with E. coli O157:H7 and stored at 4 °C for various times (0, 24, 48, 72 h) to allow biofilms to form. After each time, leaves were treated with either a 3-min wash with a sodium hypochlorite solution (0, 300, or 600 ppm) or increasing doses of irradiation (0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, or 1 kGy). Viable bacteria were recovered and enumerated. Chlorine washes were generally only moderately effective, and resulted in maximal reductions of 1.3 log CFU/g for baby spinach and 1.8 log CFU/g for Romaine. Increasing time in storage prior to chemical treatment had no effect on spinach, and had an inconsistent effect on 600 ppm applied to Romaine. Allowing time for formation of biofilm-like aggregations reduced the efficacy of irradiation. D10 values (the dose required for a 1 log reduction) significantly increased with increasing storage time, up to 48 h postinoculation. From 0 h of storage, D10 increased from 0.19 kGy to a maximum of 0.40 to 0.43 kGy for Romaine and 0.52 to 0.54 kGy for spinach. SEM showed developing biofilms on both types of leaves during storage. Bacterial colonization of the stomata was extensive on spinach, but not on Romaine. These results indicate that the protection of bacteria on the leaf surface by biofilm formation and stomatal colonization can reduce the antimicrobial efficacy of irradiation on leafy green vegetables.
Practical Application: Before incorporating irradiation into the overall GMP/GHP chain, a packer or processor of leafy green vegetables must determine at what stage of processing and shipping the irradiation should take place. As a penetrating process, irradiation is best applied as a postpackaging intervention. Time in refrigerated storage between packaging and processing may alter the antimicrobial efficacy of irradiation. Irradiation on a commercial scale should include efforts to minimize the time delay between final packaging and irradiation of leafy vegetables.
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