Cyclospora Cases Continue to Increase in Number, FDA Sampling Finds Cyclospora in Imported and Domestic Cilantro

In Texas, there continues to be an increase in the number of Cyclospora infections.  No specific source has been identified.  Last week, CDC issued an update for the number of cases of Cyclospora related to Frehs Express Salads distributed through McDonalds.  That number had risen to 507 cases in 16 states.

FDA released results of its produce sampling that revealed that samples of cilantro were positive for cyclospora.  Two samples of imported cilantro as well as some domestic product.   "The results of this increased surveillance sampling so far this summer have been that two samples of cilantro offered for import from two producers in Mexico were positive for Cyclospora. In response to the finding, FDA refused entry for these shipments, and will take action to prevent contaminated cilantro from those firms from entering the U.S. "  "Domestically, a cilantro sample collected at a distributor in July tested positive for Cyclospora. Following that finding, FDA initiated an investigation and another sample was collected on the farm that also tested positive for Cyclospora."  This positive finding in domestic cilantro was not linked to ongoing cases in the US.

The parasite is a difficult organism for the produce industry to deal with - it is difficult to wash from produce and is more resistant to sanitizers.  Another issue is that when people have the illness, the Cyclospora infects the small intestine and causes watery diarrhea, with frequent, sometimes
explosive, stools. This can last from a few days to months.  During this time, they shed the oocyte, which can make its way to source water where it takes time for it to transition to its infectious state. So this is why we may see this organism becoming a bigger and bigger problem over time.

https://www.centexproud.com/news/local/cyclospora-continues-to-show-up/1404470770
Cyclospora continues to show up
By: Roland Richter 
Posted: Aug 29, 2018 11:50 AM CDT
Updated: Aug 29, 2018 09:52 PM CDT

Finding the Truth in the Consumer Reports / USDA Controversy on Drug Residues in Meat

USDA issued a response to the Consumer Reports article,  "Are Banned Drugs in Your Meat?" (links to both below).   The short of it is that Consumer Reports wrote a report on results that USDA prematurely/accidently released.  USDA said that the results were "unconfirmed, preliminary test results for samples taken from poultry."

In a statement issued by the USDA Undersecreatary,

"You may have seen a Consumer Reports story claiming that the poultry and meat you purchase in the grocery store and feed your families could contain harmful drug residues. That is not true. This story is sensational and fear-based infotainment aimed at confusing shoppers with pseudoscience and scare tactics.  Consumer Reports admits in their closing paragraph that the real agenda behind this piece is to convince Americans to eat less meat. 

"On March 3, 2017, in our haste to be transparent and responsive, we mistakenly released in response to a FOIA request, unconfirmed, preliminary test results for samples taken from poultry. We corrected our mistake with the requestor. However, the unconfirmed sampling results continue to be passed around as accurate, truthful information – they are not."

In these times where it is hard to determine what is truth, shame on both groups.  How does a Federal Agency release data that is unconfirmed?   Is Consumer Reports as biased in their reports on other items (vacuum cleaners, etc) as they appear here?

https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/newsroom/news-releases-statements-and-transcripts/news-release-archives-by-year/archive/2018/nr-082918-01
Food Safety Professionals Ensure that “What’s in Your Meat” is Safe and Wholesome 
By Carmen Rottenberg, Acting Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety

Salmonella Outbreak Linked to Kosher Chicken Responsible for 17 Cases Including 1 Death

Further information was provided by CDC for the Health Alert that was posted last week regarding Salmonella infections linked to kosher raw chicken sold by a PA kosher poultry facility.   CDC reports that there are 17 cases with 8 hospitalizations and 1 death.

CDC Investigation Notice
https://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/chicken-08-18/index.html
Outbreak of Salmonella Infections Linked to Chicken
Posted August 29, 2018 at 11:30 AM ET

Florida Retailer Recalls Ground Beef After Linked to E. coli Illnesses

Publix Super Markets Inc., a Florida based retail grocery store chain is recalling an undetermined amount of ground beef products made from chuck (purchased by consumers from June 25, 2018, through July 31, 2018) that may be contaminated with Escherichia coli O26.   FSIS was notified of an investigation of E. coli O26 illnesses with 18 case-patients predominantly from Florida and having onset dates ranging from July 5 to July 25, 2018.  "Traceback information indicated that case-patients consumed ground chuck products purchased at various Publix Super Markets that was supplied by a yet-to-be determined source."

https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/recalls-and-public-health-alerts/recall-case-archive/archive/2018/recall-072-2018-release
Publix Super Markets Inc. Recalls Ground Chuck Products Due To Possible E. coli O26 Contamination
Class I Recall 

072-2018
Health Risk: High 

Aug 30, 2018

Europe - Nearly Half of Listeria Cases Go Undetected as Part of Outbreak Clusters

According to a recent release by European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, the current surveillance systems may not be picking up the fact that Listeria cases may be part of larger outbreak clusters.  Because of this, large multi-country outbreaks may not be detected as fast as they should (or possibly at all).

Researchers "analysed 2 726 human Listeria monocytogenes isolates from 27 countries between 2010 and 2015.  It found that slightly under 50% of the cases are isolated whereas the remaining half of cases is clustered together. Around one third of the cases that were identified as part of a cluster affected more than one country, often lasting for several years. However, only two listeriosis outbreaks were reported in the EU in 2016 and five in 2015, which suggests that many of them have gone undetected."

The US continues to develop a strong system to track and identify outbreaks.  Now using whole genome sequencing (WGS) allows distant cases to be clustered, making tracking more efficient.  This is not yet the state of testing in the EU at this time.

European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control
https://ecdc.europa.eu/en/news-events/listeria-surveillance-new-eu-wide-study-reveals-most-outbreaks-remain-undetected
Listeria surveillance: new EU-wide study reveals that most outbreaks remain undetected 
20 Aug 2018 

This Week in Mislabeled Product - Week Ending August 25, 2018

Wrong Meatloaf - Taylor Farms Northwest, LLC, a Kent, Wash. establishment, is recalling approximately 62 pounds of ready-to-eat meatloaf products due to misbranding and undeclared allergens, The problem was discovered on Aug. 20, 2018, when a Taylor Farms Northwest, LLC employee conducted an inventory check and discovered the mislabeling of the Turkey Meatloaf with Kale as Homestyle Meatloaf, which is a beef product.
     
https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/recalls-and-public-health-alerts/recall-case-archive/archive/2018/recall-068-2018-release
News Release
Taylor Farms Northwest, LLC Recalls Ready-To-Eat Meatloaf Products Due To Misbranding and Undeclared Allergens 
Class I Recall
068-2018
Health Risk: High
Aug 21, 2018

FSIS Issues a Health Alert Regarding Salmonella Linked to PA Kosher Poultry Establishment

FSIS issued a health alert after a determination was made about a potential link between Empire Kosher brand raw chicken products and Salmonella illness cluster.  The alert is for both raw whole chicken and raw chicken parts.  The illnesses occurred from products that were produced and sold to consumers from September 2017 to June 2018.  While the number of cases were not in the release, it did state that half of affected case-patients have been hospitalized due to illness.

https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/newsroom/news-releases-statements-transcripts/news-release-archives-by-year/archive/2018/pha-08242018-1
FSIS Issues Public Health Alert for Empire Kosher Poultry, Inc. Raw Chicken Products due to Possible Salmonella Contamination

Colorado Establishment Recalls Ground Beef for E. coli O157:H7

Cargill Meat Solutions, a Fort Morgan, Colo. establishment, is recalling approximately 25,288 pounds of ground beef products that may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7.  The problem was discovered on Aug. 22 by the establishment when they reviewed their records and determined that the product may be associated with product that was presumptive positive for E. coli O157:H7.

https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/recalls-and-public-health-alerts/recall-case-archive/archive/2018/recall-069-2018-release
Cargill Meat Solutions Recalls Ground Beef Products due to Possible E. coli O157:H7 Contamination 
Class I Recall 
069-2018 
Health Risk: High 
Aug 23, 2018 

Amazon Discusses Monitoring for Food Safety Issues and Conducting Recalls

An interesting read in Food Engineering Magazine on how Amazon scans consumer complaints for food safety issues and how the company handles recalls.  

With over 300 million customers worldwide, the company moves a lot of product.  And with that, there will be complaints.  But going through "16 million pieces of customer feedback per week, in more than 40 languages" to find issues is not easy.   In addition, there are postings on social media sites and product reviews. The company employs machine learning computer systems that go beyond keyword identification to understand "context, sentiment, and sentence structure."

For recalls, the company uses emails to contact customers  with instructions for return and if relevant, a refund.  The success rate with emails is stated as 68.8 percent of the messages sent were opened.
The company also quarantines inventory preventing the product from being shipped or reordered.  Then the company also removes inventory from the supply chain by returning or destroying products.

Food Engineering Magazine
https://www.foodengineeringmag.com/articles/97693-how-amazon-handles-food-safety-recalls
How Amazon handles food safety, recalls
Amazon VP Careltt Ooton explains how the company uses Natural Language Processing to scan customer feedback and constantly monitor for food safety issues
August 17, 2018
Crystal Lindell