In the news

A team of scientists from Argentina tested the effect of a cocktail of six lytic phages on pathogenic E. coli in meat and milk. The cocktail was found effective against pathogenic E. coli strains in milk and meat especially at room and abusive temperatures. The phage cocktail remained viable at high numbers after challenges in food matrices. The cocktail was effective against DH5α, an enteropathogenic (EPEC) and two Shiga-toxigenic (STEC) E. coli strains. At 4 °C, cell counts were significantly lower (2.2–2.8 log10 CFU/mL) when E. coli strains (∼109 CFU/mL) were challenged against the phage cocktail (∼109 PFU/mL) in Hershey-Mg broth after 24 h. The reductions were higher (3.2–3.4 log10 CFU/mL) after a 48 h exposure for all the strains tested. In milk, the cocktail was highly effective since bacterial counts were below the detection limit (<101 CFU/mL) at 4 °C, while the reductions ranged from 2 to 4 log10 CFU/mL at 24 °C after a 24 h exposure. At 37 °C, DH5α was eliminated within 2 h, and an average cell decrease of 4 log10 CFU/mL was observed for the three pathogenic strains tested. When the assays were performed in meat, the count reduction ranged from 0.5 to 1.0 log10 CFU/mL after 48 h at 4 °C, while a higher cell inactivation was achieved at 24 °C (2.6–4.0 log10 CFU/mL) and 37 °C (3.0–3.8 log10 CFU/mL). @ https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S074000201731184X?dgcid=rss_sd_all

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced that J.T.M. Provisions Co., a Harrison, from Ohio recalled approximately 960 pounds of cooked ground beef patty products that may be adulterated with Listeria monocytogenes. The cooked, ready-to-eat beef patty crumble items were produced on May 17, 2018. 20-lb. cases containing four 5-lb sealed pouches of “COOKED BEEF PATTY CRUMBLES. These items were shipped to distribution centers located in California. FSIS inspection program personnel discovered the problem on August 31, 2018 during routine inspection duties. The product was tested by the establishment and found to be positive for L. monocytogenes under their sampling program. There have been no confirmed reports of adverse reactions due to consumption of these products. @ https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/recalls-and-public-health-alerts/recall-case-archive/archive/2018/recall-073-2018-release

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced that Publix Supermarkets of Lakeland FL recalled 29 different ground chuck products made from chuck that may be contaminated with Escherichia coli O26. The ground chuck products include burgers, sliders, and meatballs in flavors such as bacon and fried onion to stuffed peppers and meatloaf grillers. The items were shipped to a variety of stores in Florida. On Aug. 16, 2018, FSIS was notified of an investigation of E. coli O26 illnesses, it was determined that raw ground chuck was the probable source of the reported illnesses. The epidemiological investigation identified 18 case-patients, predominantly from Florida, with illness onset dates ranging from July 5 to July 25, 2018. @ https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/recalls-and-public-health-alerts/recall-case-archive/archive/2018/recall-072-2018-release

As we reported a few days ago, the US Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety Inspection services (USDA-FSIS) Issues Public Health Alert for Empire Kosher poultry raw chicken products due to Salmonella I 4,[5],12:i:- infections. As of August 27, 2018, 17 people have been reported ill from four states (Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, and Virginia). Eight people have been hospitalized, including one person whose death was reported from New York. CDC began investigating this outbreak in late June 2018 after the New York State Department of Health found several ill people reported eating kosher chicken. Data showed that some kosher chicken products are contaminated with Salmonella I 4,[5],12:i:- and they made people sick. The outbreak strain was also identified in samples of raw chicken collected from two facilities, including one facility that processes Empire Kosher brand chicken. WGS showed that the Salmonella strain from the slaughterhouse samples is closely related genetically to the Salmonella strain from ill people. @ https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2018/s0829-salmonella-kosher-chicken.html