In the news

Since 2017 E. coli O157H:7 in leafy greens caused outbreaks across the U.S. and Canada sickening more than 500 people (200 admitted to hospitals and seven death).  As a result, the FDA has released its 2020 Leafy Greens Action plan to resolve repeated E. coli outbreaks from romaine lettuce. The plan calls for a more urgent and collaborative approach to solve the problem, providing technical assistance to the farmers. The leafy green industry welcomes FDA input on product testing data, research, and information gathered through outbreak investigations. The FDA’s plan has many initiatives, including Advanced agricultural water testing; Enhanced inspections, auditing and certification programs; Develop a “Leafy Green Data Trust,” a public-private bank of data from inspections, traceability, audits and other information collected by growers; Meeting with growers in Salinas, Calif., and Yuma, Ariz., about issues specific to those regions; Continued FDA surveillance inspections of romaine; Issue a proposed rule on required records for traceability; Enhance recall communications, including using retail loyalty card data; Accelerate whole-genome sequencing data submissions, and Support multi-year “longitudinal” studies in growing areas to understand better how pathogens survive. @ https://www.freshfruitportal.com/news/2020/03/06/fda-unveils-leafy-green-safety-action-plan/

A report on antimicrobial resistance in zoonoses released today by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) claims that Salmonella and Campylobacter are becoming increasingly resistant to ciprofloxacin. The data shows that a large proportion of Salmonella bacteria are multidrug-resistant.  In humans, the resistance increased overall from 1.7% (2016) to 4.6% (2018). For Campylobacter, 16 out of 19 countries report very high or extremely high percentages of ciprofloxacin resistance. High resistance to ciprofloxacin is also described in Salmonella and E. coli bacteria from poultry. The combined resistance to fluoroquinolones and third-generation cephalosporines in Salmonella and fluoroquinolones and macrolides in Campylobacter remains low. In food-producing animals, susceptibility to all antimicrobials has increased. A decline in resistance to ampicillin and tetracyclines in Salmonella Typhimurium in many countries is an encouraging trend. @ https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/publications/EU-summary-report-antimicrobial-resistance-zoonoses-2017-2018

The Coronavirus (COVID19) is impacting globally every aspect of life, and the food industry is no exception. Some factories, mainly in China, have closed. Travel around the globe became much more challenging. Consumers in states impacted by COVID19 (Washington, California, and Colorado) are hoarding shelf-stable foods such as canned goods, dried beans and rice, cereals, and powdered milk. As a result, some food companies are increasing their production of such products. Only a small percentage of the food ingredients are sourced from China. However, companies are anticipating chain interruptions. The U.S. imports and exports billions of dollars worth of food to and from China every year, and the COVID-19 outbreak is having an impact. While the FDA claims that they are “not aware of any reports at this time of human illnesses that suggest COVID-19 can be transmitted by food or food packaging,” companies are sourcing more ingredients from domestic sources. Many companies are instituting international travel bans, and some have reduced their financial forecast.@ https://foodindustryexecutive.com/2020/03/how-is-coronavirus-impacting-the-food-industry/?utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=84326574&_hsenc=p2ANqtz–Xy1A_xd2cRZDpcXbVnNYilKug2bj_VU2KaShJ09oJF_myydlEr1HdtW2ruNRWpdOrxNlvSgO9mZijvvQhS7dSI6cH8w&_hsmi=84326574

FDA, CDC, and state and local partners investigated an outbreak of Listeria monocytogenes infections linked to hard-boiled eggs produced by Almark Foods’ Gainesville, Georgia facility. Almark Foods announced an initial voluntary recall of hard-boiled and peeled eggs in pails on December 20, 2019, and then on December 23, 2019, expanded their recall to include all hard-boiled eggs produced at the Gainesville, Georgia facility. As of March 4, 2020, this outbreak appears to be over. Eight people infected with the outbreak strain of Listeria monocytogenes were reported from five states (FL (1), ME (2), PA (1), SC (2), TX (2)). Five ill people were hospitalized, and one death was reported from Texas. The Almark recall included products sold under more than 30 brand names for foodservice use and direct sale to consumers in stores including Savannah Food Company Inc, Fresh Location, Fresh Location (MiniMeal2go), Meijer, Veggie Noodle Co, Reichel Foods Inc.( Pro2Snac-to-the-max), Dierbergs Markets, Great American Deli, Bakkavor Foods USA (sold at Trades Joes). In this investigation, WGS showed that bacteria isolated from ill people were closely related genetically. This means that people in this outbreak were likely to share a common source of infection. FDA found Listeria bacteria in an environmental sample taken at the Almark Foods Gainesville, Georgia, processing facility during an FDA inspection conducted in December 2019. WGS showed that the bacterium in the environmental sample was closely related genetically to bacteria from ill people. @ https://www.cdc.gov/listeria/outbreaks/eggs-12-19/index.html