In the news

The Meatingplace reported that the USDA/FSIS has issued its final rule on Salmonella as an adulterant in raw breaded stuffed chicken products, declaring that when the bacteria exceed 1 CFU per gram or higher for Salmonella contamination. In a news release, the agency said the final rule will go into effect 12 months after publication in the Federal Register; publication is likely next week. The announcement caps a long, controversial effort to stem the incidence of consumers becoming ill from eating raw poultry products that may appear cooked and not handled appropriately or fully cooked in the home. One change in the final rule is that FSIS will carry out verification procedures, including sampling and testing the raw incoming chicken component of these products, before stuffing and breading, instead of testing the original product. In a statement released today, NCC President Mike Brown said it is “gravely concerned that the precedent set by this abrupt shift in longstanding policy has the potential to shutter processing plants, cost jobs, and take safe food and convenient products off shelves. [Meanwhile,] the agency has no idea if this will move the needle on public health.” NCC estimates that on an annual basis, more than 200 million servings of this product will be lost, 500 to 1,000 people will lose their jobs, and the annual cost to industry will be significantly higher than USDA’s estimates. @https://www.meatingplace.com/Industry/News/Details/114333

The CFIA said in a news release that Juewei Food Canada, LTD (based in Delta, British Columbia, with its parent company based in Changsha, China, recalled products due to Listeria monocytogenes. An array of products, including processed meat and poultry items, are being recalled by Jue Wei Food (Canada) Ltd. due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination. The company triggered the recall, and there have been no reported illnesses associated with the consumption of the recalled products. Still, CFIA said it is conducting a food safety investigation, which may lead to the recall of other products. There have been no reported illnesses associated with the consumption of these products. @ https://recalls-rappels.canada.ca/en/alert-recall/juewei-brand-meat-and-vegetable-products-recalled-due-listeria-monocytogenes?utm_source=gc-notify&utm_medium=email&utm_content=en&utm_campaign=hc-sc-rsa-22-23

A study provides insight into the temperature profiles of domestic refrigerators in the Netherlands and the impact on the number of listeriosis cases related to ready-to-eat (RTE) cooked meat products. A survey was conducted among Dutch consumers (n=1020) to assess their knowledge and behavior related to refrigerators. Out of the participants, 534 measured their refrigerator’s temperature, revealing an average temperature of 5.7 °C (standard deviation (SD) of 2.2 °C) with a maximum of 17 °C. The 24-hour temperature profiles of an additional set of actively surveyed refrigerators (n = 50) showed that the temperature measured on the upper shelf was significantly higher (mean 7.7 °C, SD 2.7 °C) than the temperature measured on the bottom shelf (5.7 °C, SD 2.1 °C). Quantitative Microbiological Risk Assessment (QMRA) predicted that the primary factors contributing to the risk of listeriosis were the initial concentration and the time and temperature during household storage. Scenario analysis revealed that storing opened RTE cooked meat products at home for either <7 days or at temperatures <7 °C resulted in a significant reduction of over 80 % in predicted illness cases. Among all illness cases, the elderly represented nearly 90 %. When assessing the impact of the disease in terms of Years of Life Lost (YLL), the contribution of the elderly was 59 %. Targeted communication, particularly directed towards the elderly, on the importance of storing RTE cooked meat products at the recommended temperature on the bottom or middle shelf as well as consuming within two to three days after opening, holds the potential to significantly reduce the number of cases. @ https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0168160523004336

CORE update of April 24, 2024: the CORE list of outbreaks and adverse events includes two activities. The outbreak of Salmonella Typhimurium (ref #1218) in Infinite Herbs, LLC, voluntarily recalled 2.5-oz packages of Infinite fresh organic basil. On April 19, 2024, Infinite Herbs, LLC expanded the recall to include 2.0- and 4.0-oz packages of Melisa organic basil. The outbreak advisory has been updated to include additional information about recalled products. FDA’s investigation is ongoing. In the outbreak of E. coli in a product that has not yet been identified (ref #1221), the case count increased from nine to 12. FDA’s investigation is ongoing.@ https://www.fda.gov/food/outbreaks-foodborne-illness/investigations-foodborne-illness-outbreaks?utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery