In the news

On April 24 the FDA and CDC updated their investigation of Salmonella Carrau illnesses linked to pre-cut melon products. The contaminated products include cantaloupe, honeydew, or watermelon, or maybe mixes of some or all of these melons and other pre-cut fruit. On April 12, 2019, Caito Foods, LLC, of Indianapolis, Ind., recalled products containing pre-cut melons because they are potentially contaminated with Salmonella. Additionally, Caito Foods, LLC temporarily suspended producing and distributing these products. Salmonella Carrau is a rare type of Salmonella but has been historically seen in imported melons. Reports from Caito Foods, LLC indicate that imported melons were used in the suspect pre-cut melon products. The products were packaged in clear, plastic clamshell containers and distributed in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. The products were sold in Kroger, Target, Trader Joe, Walmart, and Amazon. @ https://www.fda.gov/Food/RecallsOutbreaksEmergencies/Outbreaks/ucm635949.htm?utm_campaign=Outbreak%20Salmonella%20Carrau%20Pre-cut%20Melons&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua

the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced that Grant Park Packing, from Franklin Park, Ill. Recalled approximately 53,200 pounds of raw ground beef that may be contaminated with E. coli O103. The bulk raw ground beef was produced on October 30-31, 2018 and November 1, 2018. 40-lb. bulk cardboard boxes of “North Star Imports & Sales, LLC. 100% GROUND BEEF BULK 80% LEAN/ 20% FAT” marked “FOR INSTITUTIONAL USE ONLY”. These items were shipped to Minnesota for further distribution and Kentucky for institutional use. FSIS and its public health partners have been investigating an outbreak of E. coli O103. Unopened, intact, packages of ground beef collected as part of the ongoing investigation tested positive for E. coli O103 at an FSIS laboratory. The sample was collected at a point of service where multiple case-patients ate. At this time, there is no definitive link between this positive product and the ongoing E. coli O103 outbreak. Many clinical laboratories do not test for non-O157 STEC, such as O103 because it is harder to identify than STEC O157:H7. @ https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/recalls-and-public-health-alerts/recall-case-archive/archive/2019/recall-048-2019-release

The FDA released a report on its results from inspections and environmental sampling for Listeria monocytogenes and Salmonella at 89 ice cream production facilities in 32 states from Sept. 12, 2016, to Aug. 30, 2017. The sampling began following 16 recalls of ice cream products due to pathogens, and an outbreak of listeriosis linked to ice cream, that occurred from 2013 to 2015. The sampling was intended to find the extent to which Listeria monocytogenes and Salmonella may be in the manufacturing environment. In nearly ½ of the ice cream production facilities inspected no objectionable conditions were found. The FDA did detect Listeria monocytogenes in 19 of the facilities; however, only one of them was found to have the pathogen on a food-contact surface. The FDA also detected Salmonella in one facility. As a result of FDA inspections, three voluntary recalls were conducted in 2017 and 2018. These include two recalls of Working Cow Homemade Inc. ice creams due to Listeria monocytogenes, and a Nelson’s Creamery LLC recall due to undeclared soy lecithin in one of their products. The FDA also suspended Working Cow Homemade Inc.’s food facility registration in 2018. The FDA lifted the suspension earlier this year after the firm changed its business model to cease making ice cream and only distribute product made by other manufacturers. Companies that follow the rule and employ robust environmental monitoring programs will likely occasionally detect environmental pathogens, but how an establishment responds to a pathogen finding is critical. @ https://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/FDAInBrief/ucm636563.htm?utm_campaign=042419_FIB_FDA%20takes%20steps%20to%20improve%20ice%20cream%20production%20facility%20safety&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua

After 2018 fall outbreak of E. coli in romaine lettuce, LGMA amended the agreement to include more food safety practices on farms. Scott Horsfall, CEO of the LGMA, said in a statement, “The California Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement Board of Directors has adopted additional requirements to reduce risk when it comes to water used in growing lettuce and leafy greens. This means that every box of leafy greens placed into commerce by a certified LGMA member will now be produced under new, more stringent requirements.”The contaminated irrigation water is perceived to be the cause of the outbreak. As a result, LGMA issued new regulations, which included daily equipment cleaning, review of the impact on crops after severe weather, traceability measures, and longer buffer zones between farm fields and animal feedlots. It will also require growers to categorize the source of the water, consider how and when the fields are irrigated, test irrigation water to see if it’s safe and sanitize the water if needed. And growers will no longer be able to use untreated surface water for overhead irrigation of these crops in the 21 days before harvest. The LGMA program also requires mandatory government audits of member farms. These new rules are above and beyond the FSMA rules. Growers in the Yuma, Arizona region have also made recommendations about growing leafy greens, improving traceability and increasing sanitation protocols. Increasing buffer zones between animal’s farms and produce fields is another recommended preventative measure, according to the Yuma Safe Produce Council. Time will tell if these new measures by the LGMA and the Yuma Safe Produce Council will be effective. @ https://foodpoisoningbulletin.com/2019/romaine-e-coli-outbreak-lgma-adopts-food-safety-practices/