Salmonella Blog - Surveillance & analysis on salmonella news & outbreaks

Salmonella is one of the most common intestinal infections in the United States. The reported incidence of salmonella illnesses are about 17 cases per each 100,000 persons.

In 1885, pioneering American veterinary scientist Daniel E. Salmon discovered the first strain of salmonella from the intestine of a pig.

Salmonella is a type of bacteria that causes typhoid fever and many other infections of intestinal origin. Typhoid fever is caused by a particular strain designated as salmonella typhi. But illness due to other salmonella strains is common in the U.S. Currently, the number of known strains total over 2,300. Over 40,000 actual cases are reported and confirmed yearly in the United States.

Since only about 3% of salmonella cases are officially reported nationwide, and many milder cases are never diagnosed, the true incidence is undoubtedly much higher. Approximately 31% of all food-related deaths are caused by salmonella infections in the U.S. every year.
 

Interventions designed to kill bacteria during the rinse-and-chill cycles in meat and poultry plants are being given greater emphasis by manufacturers and users of antimicrobial treatments. Plant operators are incorporating an array of sophisticated pathogen-killing technologies that can be applied multiple times during processing to minimize contamination.

Ecolab, which last summer merged with Redmond, WA-based Alcide Corp., is a supplier of the Sanova and InspexxTM 100 rinse-and-chill applications. Sanova developed by Alcide, contains acidified sodium chlorite, and it intended to combat such pathogens in poultry and red meat plants as salmonella, E.coli O157:H7, listeria, and campylobacter. Agents typically are applied to poultry in a spray cabinet following evisceration and before birds enter immersion chillers. A post-chill dip tank containing Sanova is another potential application point.

Red meat or beef also can be rinsed with Sanova following skinning or evisceration. Carcasses often receive Sanova treatments after cooling, and again when the beef arrives at other plants for cutting.

Besides the Sanova treatments, Maverick also leverages such food-safety technologies as steam vacuums, steam pasteurization, organic acid washers, and ultra-violet lights.

Inspexx 100 is a mixture of peroxyacids that are designed to eradicate salmonella, campylobacter, listeria, and E.coli O157:H7. It can be applied to poultry in spray cabinets and immersion chillers.
 

Wairarapa Bakery and Cafe on Queen Street, Masterton, re-opened yesterday after being closed for several days because of an outbreak of food poisoning. The eatery became the focus of a public health inquiry after links between salmonella illness and the cafe were made on February 15.

In 10 days eight cases of salmonella had been notified in Wairarapa and of these six people had eaten at Wairarapa Bakery.

Medical Officer of Health Dr Annette Nesdale, said the staff of Choice Health in Masterton and the cafe management are working together to find the cause of the salmonella outbreak.
 

Margaret-Ann Reynard, 39, is suing Exquisite Quisine after eating at one of its restaurants in East Kilbride with her fiance in 2000. The former midwife is seeking one million pounds in compensation after claiming a Chinese meal at the restaurant gave her salmonella poisoning and triggered arthritis.

Her counsel, Maria Maguire QC, told the Court of Session the firm had admitted liability for the salmonella case.

Exquisite Cuisine maintains she had pre-existing health problems which affected her ability to work. It claims the sum sought is excessive.
 

County health officials are again warning people not to buy or eat illegal cheese that has been sold at swap meets, out of the backs of cars and trucks, on street corners and even door to door, reports Gig Conaughton.

Last July, county officials warned people to stay away from illegal, so-called, "bathtub" cheeses, that have been known to be made in bathtubs, homemade wooden vats and rusted cheese molds. Illegally made cheeses are often made with raw, unpasteurized milk that can cause people to become very ill if they eat it.

In July, health officials said summertime was the main time they had problems with the illegal cheese market because the number of street vendors increases when the weather warms up. But this week, county officials said they have been investigating an increasing number of reported illnesses that had been positively linked to a salmonella bacteria found in confiscated, illegally produced cheeses.

The cheese is referred to as "queso fresco". Queso fresco literally means "fresh cheese" and is a soft, white cheese that has a mild salty flavor. There are queso fresco cheeses made by licensed manufacturers and sold in stores. Those cheeses are safe, health officials said, but cheese that is made illegally, and often sold door to door or at informal markets, can make people very sick.

Officials urge

All but three New Brighton Elementary School students sickened after eating undercooked chicken were back in school today, said Superintendent John Osheka to the Tribune-Review.

The problem began when cafeteria workers mistakenly served a tray of undercooked chicken to a group of fourth graders for lunch. Twenty-eight children complained of stomach pains shortly afterward and were sent home with handouts on the symptoms and treatment of salmonella.

Most of the children were back in school yesterday. Cafeteria workers have since received new instructions on proper cooking procedures.
 

Because of the recent weather-related problems in California, all almonds are in slim supply. The situation is even worse for raw almonds. These are the nuts generally used in biscotti, almond croissants, and other confections, and eaten by consumers who prefer their nuts plain.

Trader Joe's, which does a brisk trade in nuts, was particularly hard hit by a salmonella-related recall. The California-based chain had been selling raw Paramount nuts. Now it offers pasteurized almonds. Pasteurized almonds look like the raw variety, and they even taste the same.

Since August, the Almond Board of California and the US Food and Drug Administration have recommended that most shipments of raw almonds in this country be subject to the same treatment, though the FDA has not banned the raw product. As a result, it has been increasingly difficult to find raw almonds in stores.

Whole Foods will continue to sell raw almonds "because it is a product demanded by our customers and there is nothing inherently unsafe about raw almonds," according to Whole Foods spokesperson Amy Hopfensperger. She adds, "We completed thorough monitoring of our suppliers to ensure we receive the highest quality nuts that have been harvested and stored properly before they reach our shelves."
 

About 20 fourth-graders at New Brighton Area Elementary School in Beaver County were sent home Tuesday after eating undercooked chicken and complaining of feeling sick.

The district sent a letter home with the students explaining to parents what happened and providing information on the symptoms and treatment of salmonella enterocolitis, also known as salmonellosis.

One tray containing 30 servings of chicken was served to the fourth-graders during the 11:30 a.m. lunch period. The superintendent said it appears one of the cooks was putting several trays of uncooked chicken into the oven and pulling several trays of cooked chicken out of the oven when a mix-up occurred.

Richard McGarvey, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania Health Department, who explained that the health department is usually notified by physicians or hospitals after a contagious illness has been confirmed, said it was good the school warned parents so that the children can receive proper care.
 

Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich has announced that hospitals, doctors and other health care providers now can electronically report infectious diseases to the state and local health departments as part of a continuing effort to improve the state's ability to respond to public health emergencies.

Chicago also is developing an electronic reporting system with its share of federal bioterrorism funds for the city's hospitals and health care providers that is not yet ready to go on-line. When Chicago's system is in place, it will be designed to share data with the state's Illinois-National Electronic Disease Surveillance System.

Dr. Eric E. Whitaker, state public health director, explained that in the past it may have taken days for the state and local health departments to receive written reports that could alert health officials to a possible public health threat. But with I-NEDSS, he said, health officials will have the information as soon it is entered into the system by a hospital emergency department or other disease reporter.

I-NEDSS is expected to be fully implemented in about four years at a cost of $10 million and will be able to collect information on all 77 state-mandated reportable diseases.
 

Ann Draughon, co-director of the University of Tennessee Food Safety Center of Excellence, warns consumers that we should be as careful when preparing fresh fruits and vegetables.

"Most people associate food-borne illness with improperly cooked foods of animal origin, but the fact is, the number of people getting sick from eating fruits and vegetables contaminated with pathogens has doubled since 1990," says Draughon.

According to the congressional General Accounting Office, an estimated 20 to 25 percent of annual food illness cases are caused by vegetables and fruits. Meat, poultry, pork and eggs still cause about 40 to 45 percent of illnesses. Seafood and cheeses also account for a large percentage of food-borne illnesses.

Pathogens are varied, and those found in fruits and vegetables have included Escherichia coli 0157:H7 in apple juice, salmonella on vegetables, and cyclospora and hepatitis A virus on produce.

She suggests the following food safety practices to reducing your risk of food-borne illness:
 

• Wash fruits and vegetables carefully under cool, running water using a brush to remove surface soil. Do not use detergents because they may leave harmful residues.
• Remove and discard the outermost leaves of a head of lettuce or cabbage. Wash each lettuce leaf under running water. Scrub melons thoroughly. Do not clean by submerging the entire head of lettuce, melon or other fruits and vegetables in water. You may just be rinsing in contaminated water.
• Sprays and washes that claim to clean fruits and vegetables may remove pesticide residues, but do not remove all microorganisms.
• Beware of contaminating foods while slicing them on the cutting board. Bacteria can grow well on the cut surface of many fruits and vegetables. Be especially careful with melons.
• Avoid leaving cut produce at room temperature for several hours. Keep them refrigerated.
• Use a separate cutting board for produce and raw meat products. Boards must be sanitized by soaking in a bleach solution or using heat in the dishwasher.
• Don't be a source of pathogens yourself. Wash you hands thoroughly with soap and water before preparing food and between handling raw and ready-to-eat foods.
• Avoid preparing food if you have a diarrheal illness. Changing a baby's diaper during food preparation is a bad idea and can easily spread illness if hands are not washed thoroughly after the change.

According to the American Journal of Epidemiology, microwaving food is not as good as reheating in the oven or a frying pan.

That information comes from the Epidemic Intelligence Service of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, which was tracing an outbreak of salmonella typhimurium in Alaska.

Researchers found that all of the people who became sick had been to the same picnic, and had taken home leftovers. But while 30 people had taken home doggie bags, only 10 became sick. According to the CDC, all who became sick had reheated their food in a microwave oven. Those who didn't become sick had used a conventional oven or frying pan.
 

Dozens of diners who got salmonella poisoning after eating at a Melbourne pizza restaurant today won compensation payments in the Federal Court.

Sofia's pizza restaurant on Burke Road in Camberwell has agreed to pay out a total of $200,000 in damages to 62 adults and 14 children who fell ill after eating there in December 2003 and January 2004. The DHS found 90 people had become ill after eating at Sofia's.

A Department of Human Services investigation found chicken was not being cooked thoroughly enough and that there had been cross-contamination with undercooked chicken and other foods.

But lawyers have warned the payout could be the last of its kind with state and federal law reforms all but wiping out people's ability to seek compensation for food poisoning.