Fw: [BITES-L] bites Aug. 10/10
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Date: Tue, 10 Aug 2010 15:41:02 -0500
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bites Aug. 10/10
Fairs, festivals and food safety
AUSTRALIA: Recall of unpasteurised cheese in Victoria
NEW YORK: Importer cited for unsafe fish products
Scientific and technical factors affecting the setting of salmonella criteria for raw poultry: a global perspective
Inactivation of a cold-induced putative RNA helicase gene of Listeria monocytogenes Is accompanied by failure to grow at low temperatures but does not affect freeze-thaw tolerance
Modeling the growth of salmonella in cut red round tomatoes as a function of temperature
Characterization of Listeria monocytogenes recovered from imported cheese contributed to the national PulseNet database by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration from 2001 to 2008
Prevalence of Listeria monocytogenes in ready-to-eat foods sampled from the point of sale in Wales, United Kingdom
Outbreaks where food workers have been implicated in the spread of foodborne disease. Part 7. Barriers to reduce contamination of food by workers
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Fairs, festivals and food safety
09.aug.10
barfblog
Sol Erdozain
http://barfblog.foodsafety.ksu.edu/blog/143585/10/08/09/fairs-festivals-and-food-safety
I've been hanging out at fairs and the sorts lately, like the Wamego Tulip Festival and Phillipsburg Rodeo. I always check for handwashing stations where there is contact with the animals and food involved. However, the animals are not the only risk at fairs and festivals and the consumer cannot always be the scapegoat.
Thirteen businesses and food stalls were ordered to shut down at the Oxegen and the Dún Laoghaire Festival of World Cultures in Ireland due to food safety violations.
"The FSAI said that it is unacceptable that some food businesses are continuing to breach food safety laws and warned all food business operators to place robust food safety systems and hygiene practices top of their agenda."
Consumers should wash their hands and do everything they can to avoid foodborne illness, but when the food handlers are the problem there's not much the consumer can do.
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2010/0809/breaking30.html
AUSTRALIA: Recall of unpasteurised cheese in Victoria
10.aug.10
Australian Food News
Nicole Eckersley
http://www.ausfoodnews.com.au/2010/08/10/recall-of-unpasteurised-cheese-in-victoria.html
A recall has been issued on Cottage Cheese Farm cheeses in Victoria due to inadequate pasteurisation of milk used in manufacturing.
The recall applies to the following products, in all sizes:
Shredded Mozzarella (bags) - All Use By dates from 31 May 10 to 01 Sep 10
Mozzarella (blocks or logs) - All Use By dates from 31 May 10 to 01 Sep 10
Grated Parmagiano (bags) - All Use By dates from 31 May 10 to 01 Sep 10
Shredded Parmagiano (bags) - All Use By dates from 31 May 10 to 01 Sep 10
Bocconcini (tub or pail) - All Use By dates from 29 May 10 to 30 Aug 10
Cherry Bocconcini (tub or pail) - All Use By dates from 29 May 10 to 30 Aug 10
Fior Di Latte (tub) - All Use By dates from 29 May 10 to 30 Aug 10
Pecorino Romano (3kg Wheels) - All Dates of Manufacture from 01 May 10 to 02 Aug 10
Full Cream Fetta (pails) - All Dates of Manufacture from 01 May 10 to 02 Aug 10
Goats Fetta (pails) - All Dates of Manufacture from 01 May 10 to 02 Aug 10
Haloumi (pails and glass jars) - All Dates of Manufacture from 01 May 10 to 02 Aug 10
Caprino (bags) - All Dates of Manufacture from 01 May 10 to 02 Aug 10
Casa Cavalla (Bag) - All Dates of Manufacture from 01 May 10 to 02 Aug 10
FSANZ has issued advice that unpasteurised milk may cause illness in pregnant women, the very young, the elderly and people with low immune systems. Any consumers concerned about their health should seek medical advice, and consumers should not eat this product.
Cottage Cheese Farms issued the following statement:
Cottage Cheese Farm is greatly concerned at any risk to its customers. This recall is being undertaken to ensure the safety of our customers as an ongoing commitment to maintain the highest possible standards of safety and product quality at all times.
NEW YORK: Importer cited for unsafe fish products
09.aug.10
Star Tribune
Jane Friedmann
http://www.startribune.com/local/north/100296254.html?elr=KArksD:aDyaEP:kD:aU2EkP7K_t:aDyaEP:kD:aUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aUU
A Brooklyn Park company that imports dried and fresh seafood from Nigeria and China committed several serious violations of federal safety rules earlier this year and must come up with plans to verify the safety of their products, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced recently.
Regulators found problems with several products imported by BCS African Wholesale Food Supply Inc., including smoked fish and fresh or frozen snails, sardines and red snapper. The company also was cited for importing several varieties of uneviscerated fish longer than 5 inches, which are illegal to sell because of the risk of botulism. BCS also was cited for a number of sanitary violations, including the presence of rodent droppings. BCS could not be reached for comment.
Scientific and technical factors affecting the setting of salmonella criteria for raw poultry: a global perspective
01.aug.10
Journal of Food Protection®, Volume 73, Number 8, pp. 1566-1590(25)
Mead, Geoffrey; Lammerding, Anna M.; Cox, Nelson; Doyle, Michael P.; Humbert, Florence; Kulikovskiy, Alexander; Panin, Alexander; Nascimento, Vladimir Pinheiro do; Wierup, Martin; The Salmonella On Raw Poultry Writing Committee
http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/iafp/jfp/2010/00000073/00000008/art00025
Abstract:
Concerns about foodborne salmonellosis have led many countries to introduce microbiological criteria for certain food products. If such criteria are not well-grounded in science, they could be an unjustified obstacle to trade. Raw poultry products are an important part of the global food market. Import and export ambiguities and regulatory confusion resulting from different Salmonella requirements were the impetus for convening an international group of scientific experts from 16 countries to discuss the scientific and technical issues that affect the setting of a microbiological criterion for Salmonella contamination of raw chicken. A particular concern for the group was the use of criteria implying a zero tolerance for Salmonella and suggesting complete absence of the pathogen. The notion can be interpreted differently by various stakeholders and was considered inappropriate because there is neither an effective means of eliminating Salmonella from raw poultry nor any practical method for verifying its absence. Therefore, it may be more useful at present to set food safety metrics that involve reductions in hazard levels. Such terms as "zero tolerance" or "absence of a microbe" in relation to raw poultry should be avoided unless defined and explained by international agreement. Risk assessment provides a more meaningful approach than a zero tolerance philosophy, and new metrics, such as performance objectives that are linked to human health outcomes, should be utilized throughout the food chain to help define risk and identify ways to reduce adverse effects on public health.
Inactivation of a cold-induced putative RNA helicase gene of Listeria monocytogenes Is accompanied by failure to grow at low temperatures but does not affect freeze-thaw tolerance
01.aug.10
Journal of Food Protection®, Volume 73, Number 8, pp. 1474-1479(6)
Azizoglu, Reha O.; Kathariou, S.
http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/iafp/jfp/2010/00000073/00000008/art00009
Abstract:
Freeze-thaw tolerance (cryotolerance) of Listeria monocytogenes is markedly influenced by temperature of growth of the bacteria, and may involve responses to low-temperature stresses encountered during freezing and thawing. A cold-sensitive mariner-based transposon mutant of L. monocytogenes F2365 was found to harbor a single insertion in LMOf2365_1746, encoding a putative RNA helicase, and earlier shown by other investigators to be induced during 4°C growth of L. monocytogenes. The mutant had normal growth at 37°C but completely failed to grow at either 4 or 10°C, and had impaired growth and reduced swarming on soft agar at 25°C. However, the mutation had no discernible influence on the ability of the bacteria to tolerate repeated freezing and thawing after growth at either 25 or 37°C. The findings suggest that the transposon insertion in the putative helicase gene, in spite of the severely cold-sensitive phenotype that accompanies it, does not affect the ability of the bacteria to cope with cold-related stresses encountered during repeated freezing and thawing.
Modeling the growth of salmonella in cut red round tomatoes as a function of temperature
01.aug.10
Journal of Food Protection®, Volume 73, Number 8, pp. 1502-1505(4)
Pan, Wenjing; Schaffner, Donald W.
http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/iafp/jfp/2010/00000073/00000008/art00013
Abstract:
Tomato-associated Salmonella outbreaks have recently become a significant food safety concern. Temperature abuse of cut tomatoes may have played a role in some of these outbreaks. The purpose of this study was to develop a mathematical model to describe the growth of Salmonella on cut tomatoes at various temperatures. Four Salmonella serotypes (Typhimurium, Newport, Javiana, and Braenderup) obtained from previous tomato-linked cases of salmonellosis were used in this study. These four serotypes were cultured separately, combined into a cocktail, and inoculated onto whole red round tomatoes and allowed to dry overnight. The tomatoes were then cut into pieces and incubated at a predetermined range of temperatures (10, 12.5, 15, 17.5, 20, 22.5, 25, 27.5, 30, and 35°C). Salmonella concentration was measured at specified time intervals to determine the growth curve for Salmonella on cut tomatoes at each temperature. The growth rates were calculated using DMFit and used to build a mathematical model to illustrate the relationship between the growth rates of Salmonella on tomatoes and incubation temperatures from 10 to 35°C. The resulting model compared favorably with a Salmonella growth model for raw poultry developed by our laboratory. The Pathogen Modeling Program underpredicted growth at low temperatures and overpredicted growth at high temperatures. ComBase predicted consistently slower growth rates than were observed in tomatoes but showed parallel increases in growth rate with increasing temperature.
Characterization of Listeria monocytogenes recovered from imported cheese contributed to the national PulseNet database by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration from 2001 to 2008
01.aug.10
Journal of Food Protection®, Volume 73, Number 8, pp. 1511-1514(4)
Timbo, Babgaleh B.; Keys, Christine; Klontz, Karl
http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/iafp/jfp/2010/00000073/00000008/art00015
Abstract:
Imported foods must meet the same U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) standards as domestic foods. The FDA determines whether an imported food is in compliance with the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. Pursuant to its regulatory activities, the FDA conducts compliance surveillance on imported foods offered for entry into the U.S. commerce. The National PulseNet Database is the molecular surveillance network for foodborne infections and is widely used to provide real-time subtyping support to epidemiologic investigations of foodborne diseases. FDA laboratories use pulsed-field gel electrophoresis to subtype foodborne pathogens recovered from imported foods and submit the molecular patterns to the National PulseNet Database at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There were 60 isolates of Listeria monocytogenes in the FDA Field Accomplishment and Compliance Tracking System from 2001 to 2008 due to cheese imported from the following countries: Mexico (n = 21 isolates), Italy (19), Israel (9), Portugal (5), Colombia (3), Greece (2), and Spain (1). We observed genetic diversity of L. monocytogenes isolates and genetic relatedness among strains recovered from imported cheese products coming to the United States from different countries. Consistent characterization of L. monocytogenes isolates recovered from imported cheeses, accompanied by epidemiologic investigations to ascertain human illness associated with these strains, could be helpful in the control of listeriosis acquired from imported cheeses.
Prevalence of Listeria monocytogenes in ready-to-eat foods sampled from the point of sale in Wales, United Kingdom
01.aug.10
Journal of Food Protection®, Volume 73, Number 8, pp. 1515-1518(4)
Meldrum, R.J.; Ellis, P.W.; Mannion, P.T.; Halstead, D.; Garside, J.; The Welsh Food Microbiological of Forum
http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/iafp/jfp/2010/00000073/00000008/art00016
Abstract:
A survey of Listeria in ready-to-eat food took place in Wales, United Kingdom, between February 2008 and January 2009. In total, 5,840 samples were taken and examined for the presence of Listeria species, including L. monocytogenes. Samples were tested using detection and enumeration methods, and the results were compared with current United Kingdom guidelines for the microbiological quality of ready-to-eat foods. The majority of samples were negative for Listeria by both direct plating and enriched culture. Seventeen samples (0.29%) had countable levels of Listeria species (other than L. monocytogenes), and another 11 samples (0.19%) had countable levels of L. monocytogenes. Nine samples (0.15%) were unsatisfactory or potentially hazardous when compared with United Kingdom guideline limits; six (0.10%) were in the unsatisfactory category (>100 CFU/g) for Listeria species (other than L. monocytogenes), and three (0.05%) were in the unacceptable or potentially hazardous category (>100 CFU/g) for L. monocytogenes. All three of these samples were from sandwiches (two chicken sandwiches and one hamand-cheese sandwich). The most commonly isolated serotype of L. monocytogenes was 1/2a. This survey was used to determine the current prevalence of Listeria species and L. monocytogenes in ready-to-eat foods sampled from the point of sale in Wales.
Outbreaks where food workers have been implicated in the spread of foodborne disease. Part 7. Barriers to reduce contamination of food by workers
01.aug.10
Journal of Food Protection®, Volume 73, Number 8, pp. 1552-1565(14)
Todd, Ewen C.D.; Michaels, Barry S.; Greig, Judy D.; Smith, Debra; Holah, John; Bartleson, Charles A.
http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/iafp/jfp/2010/00000073/00000008/art00024
Abstract:
Contamination of food and individuals by food workers has been identified as an important contributing factor during foodborne illness investigations. Physical and chemical barriers to prevent microbial contamination of food are hurdles that block or reduce the transfer of pathogens to the food surface from the hands of a food worker, from other foods, or from the environment. In food service operations, direct contact of food by hands should be prevented by the use of barriers, especially when gloves are not worn. Although these barriers have been used for decades in food processing and food service operations, their effectiveness is sometimes questioned or their use may be ignored. Physical barriers include properly engineered building walls and doors to minimize the flow of outside particles and pests to food storage and food preparation areas; food shields to prevent aerosol contamination of displayed food by customers and workers; work clothing designated strictly for work (clothing worn outdoors can carry undesirable microorganisms, including pathogens from infected family members, into the work environment); and utensils such as spoons, tongs, and deli papers to prevent direct contact between hands and the food being prepared or served. Money and ready-to-eat foods should be handled as two separate operations, preferably by two workers. Chemical barriers include sanitizing solutions used to remove microorganisms (including pathogens) from objects or materials used during food production and preparation and to launder uniforms, work clothes, and soiled linens. However, laundering as normally practiced may not effectively eliminate viral pathogens.
bites is produced by Dr. Douglas Powell and food safety friends at Kansas State University. For further information, please contact dpowell@ksu.edu or check out bites.ksu.edu.
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