In the news

Food Safety News reported that employees in a few meat and poultry processing plants reported having symptoms or testing positive for the COVID-19 virus. Among these was a Perdue Farms poultry plant in Perry, GA, a Sanderson Farms poultry facility in McComb, MS, and the Smithfield Foods Inc.’s John Morrell pork plant in Sioux Falls, SD.  Also, JBS USA cut back production at its Souderton, PA beef plant, because several managers were experiencing the flu-like symptoms. Consumer Reports (CR) send a letter to Mindy Brashears, USDA’s Under Secretary for Food Safety, requesting that FSIS report the number of FSIS inspection personnel testing positive and/or becoming ill with COVID-19 as they occur. CR also requested a review of SSOPs, HACCP plans, and compliance with them. @ https://www.foodsafetynews.com/2020/04/consumer-reports-suggests-usda-take-action-to-address-covid-19-risks/

In a statement on its website, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) announced that Fromagerie Blackburn recalled Fromagerie Blackburn brand Le Napoléon – Firm Cheese from the marketplace due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination. The products were sold in Quebec stores through March 26. The recalled cheeses were sold in 130-gram and variable-weight formats with a best-before date of 10JL20 — July 10, 2020. There have been no reported illnesses due to the consumption of the product. @ https://www.inspection.gc.ca/food-recall-warnings-and-allergy-alerts/2020-03-26/eng/1585278929785/1585278935840

The FDA Advises Restaurants in California to Stop Selling Koi Koi Trading doing business as (DBS) Min Jiang Food Store raw, ready-to-eat (RTE) salmon products due to Possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination. These recalled raw, RTE salmon products may be incorporated into sushi products for consumption.  The Salmon fillets are first wrapped in green parchment paper and then in clear plastic wrap. Salmon heads and bones (per customer request) are placed in clear plastic bags. Bagged/wrapped salmon is then placed into a Styrofoam box labeled “J Foods.” These products are typically sold fresh and do not have a long shelf life, though they can be frozen to extend the shelf life. The FDA conducted environmental sampling and a routine facility inspection of Koi Koi Trading in March 2020. The FDA analyzed 98 environmental swabs, 49 of which tested positive for Listeria species. Three of these swabs were positive for L. monocytogenes. Of these three positives, one was from a food contact surface that was used for descaling and filleting RTE salmon. The two other positives were from areas near exposed RTE salmon. The FDA informed the company of the agency’s concerns, and the company has verbally indicated that it had ceased processing and been undertaking some corrective actions. @ https://www.fda.gov/food/alerts-advisories-safety-information/fda-advises-restaurants-california-stop-selling-min-jiang-food-store-inc-koi-koi-trading-salmon?utm_campaign=Alert_Min%20Jiang_03272020&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua

A new study from the University of Washington published in the Journal Global Change Biology (March 19, 2020, https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/gcb.15048), found a 283 fold increase from 1970 to 2015, in the presence of a worm that can be transmitted to humans who eat raw or undercooked seafood (Anisakis spp. or “herring worm).  When people eat live herring worms, the parasite can invade the intestinal wall and cause symptoms that mimic food poisoning.  In most cases, the worm dies after a few days, and the symptoms disappear because the worms can’t reproduce or live for more than a few days in a human’s intestine. However, they can persist and replicate in fish and other marine mammals. The worms reproduce in the guts of these animals and are released into the ocean via the marine mammals’ feces, then infecting more animals.