In the news

According to the CDC, there were nearly 3,000 reported cases of cyclosporiasis in 2018. In 2018, an outbreak tied to salads sold in a quick-service restaurant chain made more than 500 people sick in 15 states, and another associated with prepackaged vegetable trays made 250 people ill in four states. Reported cases increase during May-July. So far in 2019, 23 cases of domestically acquired cyclosporiasis have been reported. In early June, representatives of the FDA, CDC, industry, and academia participated in a scientific workshop to discuss gaps in detection methods and plans for the development of tools that will help keep this parasite out of pre- and post-harvest foods. CDC is working to make reporting easier by improving and expanding web-based reporting. The FDA and CDC are improving how they share information with each other, to help facilitate rapid identification and investigation of cyclosporiasis clusters. Last year, the FDA began using a new method, developed and validated by FDA scientists, to detect Cyclospora in food. Another method was developed for water.@ https://www.fda.gov/news-events/fda-voices-perspectives-fda-leadership-and-experts/fda-cdc-develop-robust-strategy-prevent-illnesses-caused-cyclospora?utm_campaign=FDA%20Voices%20Cyclospora&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua

The FDA announced on their website that Growers Express issued a voluntary recall of select fresh vegetable products due to potential contamination with Listeria monocytogenes. The fresh vegetable products include packaged varieties of butternut squash, cauliflower, zucchini, and butternut squashed based veggie bowl. The products originate from a Growers Express production facility in Biddeford, Maine. There are no reported illnesses. Tom Byrne, President of Growers Express said “We stopped production immediately after being notified of a single positive sample by the Massachusetts Department of Health. We are deep sanitizing the entire facility and our line equipment, as well as conducting continued testing on top of our usual battery of sanitation and quality and safety tests before resuming production.” Labels affected include Green Giant Fresh, Growers Express, Signature Farms, and Trader Joe’s. a full list of products and their distribution is available on the FDA website @ https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/growers-express-issues-voluntary-recall-multiple-fresh-vegetable-products-due-potential?utm_campaign=Growers%20Express%20Issues%20Voluntary%20Recall%20of%20Multiple%20Fresh%20Vegetable%20Products&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua

An outbreak of 62 Salmonella Uganda illnesses potentially linked to whole, fresh papayas imported from Mexico is being investigated by the U.S. FDA (https://www.fda.gov/food/outbreaks-foodborne-illness/outbreak-investigation-salmonella-uganda-potentially-linked-whole-fresh-papayas-june-2019?utm_campaign=Outbreak%3A%20Salmonella%20Whole%2C%20Fresh%20Papayas_06282019&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua), along with the CDC (https://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/uganda-06-19/index.html), and state and local partners. These illnesses have been reported in eight states (Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Florida, and Texas) and 23 people were hospitalized. The preliminary data generated indicates that whole, fresh papayas from Mexico are the source of this outbreak. There are no recalled products at this time. In 2017, at least 251 people across 25 states were sickened from papayas imported from Mexico. Maradol Papayas was indicated as the source of four outbreaks involving eight strains of Salmonella. These included Salmonella Urbana, Salmonella Newport, Salmonella Infantis, Salmonella Anatum, Salmonella Thompson, Salmonella Kiambu, Salmonella Agona and Salmonella Gaminara.

The FDA announced on its website that Central Aquatics of Franklin, Wisconsin recalled 96 cases of Aqueon Betta Food (.95 oz plastic jar) because it might be contaminated with Salmonella. Fish with Salmonella infections are not well documented and fish carrying salmonella typically does not show any signs of disease. The product was distributed to Georgia, Illinois, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania via distribution centers. No illnesses have been reported to-date. An outside independent laboratory contracted to conduct Salmonella testing mistakenly indicated the two lots of the recalled product were negative for Salmonella, when in fact it was found to be positive for Salmonella. Central Aquatics immediately initiated steps to recall the subject product upon notification of the error by the independent laboratory. @ https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/central-aquatics-recalls-aqueon-betta-food-95-oz-jar-because-possible-salmonella-health-risk?utm_campaign=Central%20Aquatics%20Recalls%20Aqueon%20Betta%20Food%20%28.95%20oz%20Jar%29%20Because%20of%20Possible%20Salmonella%20Health%20Risk&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua