In the news

Traditional methods for detecting and isolating Campylobacter from broiler chicken carcasses require time, expensive reagents, and artificially generated microaerophilic atmospheres. An aerobic medium that simplifies the procedure and reduces the expense of culturing Campylobacter has been described in the J Food Prot (2020) 83 (3): 405–411. Campylobacter can be grown in containers that are incubated aerobically. Hyperspectral microscopic imaging (HMI) was used to compare differences between Campylobacter cultures grown under microaerobic atmospheres and cultures grown in an aerobic medium.  HMI of three Campylobacter strains grown for 48 h microaerophilically was compared to the same strains grown for 24 and 48 h aerobically. Microaerobically cultured bacteria were detected with 98.7% accuracy, whereas the detection accuracy of cultures grown in the novel medium was slightly reduced (−4.8 and −3.2% for 24 and 48 h, respectfully).  @

Fluid milk products are being pulled off the shelves in New South Wales due to fears of E. coli contamination. Initially, Aldi pulled its Farmdale 3 Liter milk from the shelves of its ACT supermarkets and some NSW stores. Later Dairy Farmers 1 liter and 3 Liter full cream milk was also recalled. The 2L Dairy Choice full cream milk and 2L Community Co. "The Good Drop" full cream milk, both with used by dates of 25 February 2020, for sale at IGA and other independent grocery stores, are also being recalled. NSW Health said the products might be with E. coli. Lion Dairy said the impacted milk products were manufactured at their facility in Penrith in Sydney's west. Lion Dairy was recently bought by a Chinese company (China Mengniu); the sale reflected how the dairy industry is struggling in Australia. "Most Australians don't know that we import dairy products into this country because we don't make enough of it here in Australia. @ https://amp.9news.com.au/article/e8ebdc98-e867-4c70...

The FDA is cautioning pet owners not to feed their pet’s one of Aunt Jeni’s Home Made frozen raw pet food lot (All-Natural Raw Turkey Dinner Dog Food, 5 lb. (2.3 kg), lot 175331 NOV2020) after a sample collected from a store in the District of Columbia tested positive for Salmonella Infantis. Salmonella was found to be resistant to multiple antibiotic drugs. In January 2020, the FDA collected one retail sample of Aunt Jeni’s product which tested positive for Salmonella. In August 2019, FDA issued an advisory after one lot each of two varieties of Aunt Jeni’s frozen raw pet food tested positive for Salmonella and/or Listeria monocytogenes. Pets can get sick from this pathogen and may also be carriers of the bacteria and pass it on to their human companions without appearing to be ill. People can get sick from handling contaminated pet foods and treats or touching surfaces that have had contact with the contaminated pet foods and treats. @ https://www.fda.go...

As a result of the recall by Nuts 'N More LLC in the USA due to Listeria sp., the Canadian importer (Nutrition Excellence Canada) of the product announced its recall in Canada. The recalled product is a 454 gram jar with a UPC of 6 09132 00242 7 and an expiry date of Apr. 3, 2021. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is conducting a food safety investigation, which may lead to the recall of other products. If other high-risk products are recalled, the CFIA will notify the public through updated Food Recall Warnings. There have been no reported illnesses associated with the consumption of this product. @ https://inspection.gc.ca/food-recall-warnings-and-allergy-alerts/2020-02-10/eng/1581381640531/1581381646484