If You Get "Poona," The Good News Is You Will Probably Get Over It

Posted by Salmonella Lawyer on September 30, 2008

If you come down with something with the word "Poona" in it, somehow it seems a whole lot more serious.  However, at least one Canadian health expert is saying you get Salmonella Poona and you get over it.   However serious it gets, health experts in Canada are saying North America is experiencing an outbreak of another rare strain of Salmonella, this one known as "Poona."

And Canada says there are 48 confirmed cases in the United States.

The Canwest News Service reports:

Canadian health officials are investigating a potential North American outbreak of a rare strain of salmonella called Salmonella Poona.

The Public Health Agency says it is working closely with local and U.S. health authorities to determine the origin of the food-borne illness that has sickened 48 people in the United States.

In Canada there have been six cases in Manitoba, Quebec and Nova Scotia with the same "genetic fingerprint" as the strain in the U.S. and 14 other suspected cases in Ontario. 

No one has been hospitalized so far, the agency said in a news release.

"We don't yet know the source of the outbreak. (The investigation) is very preliminary right now," said Philippe Brideau, with the Public Health Agency.

Brideau said for most people the risk from Salmonella Poona is very low.

"It's a relatively rare strain around the world but it seems that people just get sick and move on," he said, adding that there is an average of 20 cases a year in Canada of the particular strain.

Saintpaul was the last rare strain of Salmonella to be responsible for a North American-wide outbreak.  Tomatoes and peppers grown in Mexican were implicated in that Salmonella outbreak.

For more from Canwest, go here.

20 Salmonella Cases Linked to Amarillo Texas IHOP

Posted by Salmonella Lawyer on September 24, 2008

According the the Texas Department of Health, as of noon, Wednesday afternoon, the number of salmonella cases reported to the Health Department linked to the IHOP restaurant at I-40 and Western Street has grown to twenty.  Cases still continue to be reported and are investigated, but here are the facts that we know to be verified by a joint investigation and consultation with the Texas Department of State Health Services.  As of now, the Environmental Health Department is completing the second round of investigational inspection and interviews with IHOP employees. The EHD is also in the process of of swabbing equipment, surfaces, and items where salmonella can grow. Those samples will then be taken to three different laboratories and test results should be available next week.

Amarillo IHOP Linked To Salmonella Outbreak

Posted by Salmonella Lawyer on September 23, 2008

For the third time in three months, the International House of Pancakes (IHOP) in Amarillo, Texas is closed--this time  at  least  seven  confirmed cases of salmonella are linked to  the restaurant.

With its location just off Interstate 40 at Western, the IHOP could well be sending a lot more sick people down the road.

Since we don't have a whole lot more on this one yet, how about the history of IHOP on its 50th birthday!


IHOP AT 50

1958 -- Brothers Al and Jerry Lapin open the first International House of Pancakes restaurant in Toluca Lake, Calif.

1961 -- The Lapins sell the first International House of Pancakes franchise to an investor from Kentucky.

1961 -- The company of pancake restaurant chains goes public. It's one of the first-ever restaurant companies to sell stock.

1963 -- International House of Pancakes adopts the corporate name International Industries as it begins to acquire several brands, including Orange Julius and The Original House of Pies, as well as non-restaurant businesses.

1966 -- Al Lapin Jr. buys brother Jerry Lapin's half of the business after the two have different ideas about the future of the company.

1972 -- Al Lapin Jr. loses control of the company as International Industries struggles.

1972 -- The acronym IHOP first appears as part of a marketing campaign.

1975 -- International Industries folds, and IHOP reorganizes as a business entity.

1979 -- The last of the iconic IHOP A-frame franchise restaurants is built.

1979 -- Swiss company Wienerwald Holdings purchases a majority interest in IHOP.

1982 -- Wienerwald files for bankruptcy; IHOP is taken over by another Swiss company called Svido.

1984 -- IHOP introduces the popular Rooty Tooty Fresh 'n Fruity breakfast on its menus.

1987 -- Then-IHOP CFO Richard K. Herzer and a team of investors purchase IHOP and begin rebuilding the company.

1992 -- The 500th IHOP restaurant opens for business.

1993 -- The average sales per IHOP restaurant exceeds $1 million for the first time.

1998 -- IHOP systemwide sales reach $1 billion for the first time.

2001 -- The 1,000th IHOP opens.

2002 -- Julia A. Stewart is appointed president of IHOP.

2007 -- IHOP acquires Applebee's International Inc. for a reported $2.1 billion.

2008 -- IHOP opens its 1,361st restaurant and celebrates its 50th year of serving pancakes.
 

 

Salmonella Outbreak In Pacific Northwest Due To Sprouts, Says Bill Marler

Posted by Salmonella Lawyer on September 05, 2008

Thirteen people -- nine in Washington and four in Oregon -- have been infected with Salmonella Typhimurium from eating alfalfa sprouts.

The illnesses have been traced back to Sprouters Northwest, Inc in Kent, WA, which has voluntarily recalled the product and stopped distributing it. Consumers are advised not to purchase or eat any Sprouters Northwest products containing alfalfa sprouts, and to discard or return any of the products they may have in their homes.

"Sprouts are often called a 'stealth' vehicle for infection because people aren't always aware that they're eating them," said Seattle food borne illness attorney William Marler. "Sprouts are added to salads or sandwiches and hardly noticed. I always recommend that people think hard about eating sprouts, because they have a very poor history.
 
"According to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control), sprouts are the number two vehicle for produce outbreaks, right behind leafy greens. And when the number of people who eat sprouts is factored in -- far fewer than those who eat lettuce and other salad greens -- it's eye-opening."
 
There are many ways that sprout contamination can occur. Animals grazing in alfalfa fields can contaminate the harvest, and then machinery used on a contaminated field can spread that contamination as other fields are harvested and processed. Once seeds from different fields are mixed, contamination can spread to other batches, and as seeds are 'scarred' or rubbed to crack them, bacteria can enter the seed itself.
 
The warm, moist environment used to grow sprouts is ideal for bacteria growth, and sprouts can play host to a number of different strains of Salmonella, as well as E. coli O157:H7. Bacteria on or in sprouts is difficult to detect, and most people do not wash or cook sprouts, which might kill or remove infectious bacteria.
 
"This is not the first time Sprouters Northwest has had to recall product," continued Marler. "They recalled sprouts in 2004 after a number of people were infected by Salmonella. There are steps that can be taken to reduce the incidence of bacteria in a sprout product, and we need to find out what has gone wrong at this company and get it changed."
 
Salmonella is a bacterium that causes one of the most common intestinal illnesses in the US: salmonellosis infection. Symptoms of salmonellosis can begin 6 to 72 hours from consumption, and include diarrhea, abdominal cramps, fever, nausea, and/or vomiting. Dehydration is a concern, especially with the elderly, very young, or immune compromised. In mild cases of infection, symptoms subside in 5-7 days, but some can develop serious complications, so a doctor visit is recommended.
 
BACKGROUND: Marler Clark has represented thousands of victims of foodborne illness outbreaks since 1993, including the Harmony Farms and Hydro Harvest sprout outbreaks. The firm's attorneys have litigated high-profile food poisoning cases against such companies as ConAgra, Wendy's, Chili's, Chi-Chi's, and Jack in the Box. Marler Clark currently represents thousands of victims of outbreaks traced to ground beef, tomatoes, spinach, and peanut butter, as well as other foods. For further information contact Mary Siceloff at msiceloff@marlerclark.com or (206) 719-4705, or visit www.MarlerClark.com.