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A joint study of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), and the European Union Reference Laboratory for Listeria monocytogenes (EURL Lm, hosted by the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety – ANSES) was commissioned. In February 2010, ECDC invited the National Public Health Laboratories (NPHRLs) to start storing all available L. monocytogenes isolates with accompanying background data from human cases of listeriosis voluntarily until the end of 2011. This collaborative study, called ‘the European Listeria Typing Exercise’ (ELiTE). The goal of the study was to describe the molecular epidemiology of L. monocytogenes in humans and food. The most significant human-food cluster involved 30 human and 56 food L. monocytogenes isolates from 15 countries. Fishery products showed a high prevalence of L. monocytogenes with the highest proportion of samples with bacteria counts exceeding microbiological criterion 100 cfu/g. @ https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/sites/default/files/documents/European-listeria-typing-exercise-ELiTE-joint-report.pdf

The FDA announced that Guan’s Mushroom Co (Commerce, CA) is recalling all cases of its 200g/7.05-ounce packages of Enoki Mushroom (Product of China) because it has the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes.  The recalled products were distributed from CA, NY, and PA through produce distributors or wholesalers to retail stores nationwide. The Enoki comes in a 200g/7.05ounces, clear plastic package with the description “Enoki Mushroom” in English, Korean and French, and Guan’s logo on the front.  The product is being shipped in a white cardboard box with 25 pcs of 200g.  No illnesses have been reported to date in connection with this problem. The potential for contamination was noted after routine testing by the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development revealed the presence of Listeria monocytogenes in 200g package of Enoki. The distribution of the product has been suspended. @ https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/guans-mushroom-co-recalls-enoki-because-possible-health-risk-0

While insects have been part of the regular diets of many cultures in various regions through the centuries, the practice is not widespread in the Western world. A recent Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) publication reviews food safety concerns associated with edible insects. Farming insects for human as well as animal consumption is now on the rise. The report emphasizes the need to mitigate food safety concerns. The risk of the consumption of insects is highest when harvested from the wild and consumed raw. Farmed insects present less of a risk of microbial contamination. A better understanding of shelf-stability and exposure to microbial and chemical contaminants is needed. Specific legislation and standards are missing in most countries.  @ http://www.fao.org/3/cb4094en/cb4094en.pdf

 Leafy greens contaminated with Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) have continued to cause foodborne illness outbreaks and remain a threat to public health. A team from FDA and CDC published in J Food Prot (2021) (Irvin et al. (https://meridian.allenpress.com/jfp/article-abstract/doi/10.4315/JFP-21-112/463972/An-Overview-of-Traceback-Investigations-and-Three?redirectedFrom=fulltext) the traceback investigation of three Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) infections linked to romaine lettuce in 2018 and 2019. The study demonstrates challenges, limitations, and opportunities for improvement. The three outbreaks resulted in a total of 474 illnesses, 215 hospitalizations, and five deaths. These illnesses were linked to the consumption of romaine lettuce from three distinct growing regions in Arizona and California. The team reported several challenges: the time it took to initiate a traceback, limited product-identifying information throughout the supply chain, lack of interoperability in record-keeping systems, and co-mingling of products from multiple suppliers. The challenges resulted in time delays in identifying the farm source of the leafy greens and the inability to identify the root cause of contamination. Adopting traceability systems could help address these challenges by improving traceback investigations and ultimately preventing foodborne illnesses and future outbreaks.