Food Safety

 

Deliberate attempt to mislead the public about safety concerns.

 

In a recent CNN segment, announcing the discovery of a case of
Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) or ‘Mad Cow Disease’ at a
dairy farm in California, there was made a deliberate attempt to
mislead the public about safety concerns.

Quoting the USDA, CNN repeated claims that the cow was “never
presented for slaughter for human consumption” and “milk does not
transmit BSE.”

Two things…

It was a DAIRY cow, so the claim that it was not presented for
‘slaughter’ is a deliberate attempt to confuse the issue in the
public mind.

Additionally, both Mad Cow Disease and it’s human counterpart
Variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease are ‘prion’ diseases.  Scientific
studies have demonstrated that prions can actually transfer from
animal to animal via MILK consumption.

Prion Diseases  

About Prion Diseases
CDC.gov

Prion diseases or transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) are a family of rare progressive neurodegenerative disorders that affect both humans and animals. They are distinguished by long incubation periods, characteristic spongiform changes associated with neuronal loss, and a failure to induce inflammatory response.

The causative agents of TSEs are believed to be prions. The term “prions” refers to abnormal, pathogenic agents that are transmissible and are able to induce abnormal folding of specific normal cellular proteins called prion proteins that are found most abundantly in the brain. The functions of these normal prion proteins are still not completely understood. The abnormal folding of the prion proteins leads to brain damage and the characteristic signs and symptoms of the disease. Prion diseases are usually rapidly progressive and always fatal.

Listed below are the prion diseases identified to date. Click the linked diseases to go to their respective topic sites. CDC does not currently offer information here on every prion disease listed.

Human Prion Diseases

Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD)
Variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (vCJD)
Gerstmann-Straussler-Scheinker Syndrome
Fatal Familial Insomnia
Kuru

Animal Prion Diseases

Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE)
Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD)
Scrapie
Transmissible mink encephalopathy
Feline spongiform encephalopathy
Ungulate spongiform encephalopathy

Visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention webpage on this subject.
For more Food: videos, click here

 

North Carolina Salmonella Outbreak Under Investigation

29 with possible Paratyphi B infection

Twenty-nine possible cases of Salmonella Paratyphi B infection have been identified in Buncombe County, North Carolina, but the source of the outbreak remains undetermined.

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According to the Buncombe County Department of Health, all the cases seem to be linked to residence or travel to Buncombe County, in western North Carolina, since February 28.
Communicable disease experts from the North Carolina Division of Public Health and the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are assisting food specialists from the state Department of Agriculture with the investigation.
A hotline was established Friday to offer people a way to get accurate information about the outbreak. The number – 828-250-5300 – includes an automated message and a phone number for people with symptoms to talk with a Communicable Disease Nurse.
Public health specialists are continuing to conduct interviews with people who currently have or have had the infection, reviewing laboratory reports and inspecting food sources that may be linked to the outbreak.
Salmonella Paratyphi B, found in the intestines of humans, can be spread from person to person or by eating food or water contaminated with the feces of a person ill with Salmonella Paratyphi B infection or a person who carries this infection in their body.
The Buncombe County news release notes that any food can become contaminated at any point in the food chain, including at home or in restaurants. Contamination can occur when a person infected with Salmonella Paratyphi B handles food and does not wash their hands well after using the bathroom.

 

Read Full Article Here
 

 

33 Sickened After Attending Health Center Luncheon In Pueblo

April 28, 2012 By

At least 33 people became ill after attending the Pueblo Community Health Center’s annual luncheon on Tuesday, according to health officials in Pueblo, Colo.

“We don’t know what it is yet,” said Sarah Joseph, a spokeswoman for the Pueblo City-County Health Department. Health officials are trying determine whether the source was environmental or foodborne, she said.

Those who became ill reported gastrointestinal symptoms including diarrhea and abdominal cramping that lasted for 24 hours. So far,  77 of the 80 attendees have been interviewed and samples from those who became ill have been sent to the state lab in Denver, said Joseph. “We’re hoping to know more next week.”

Read Full Article Here

 

 

Hepatitis A in Des Moines, Iowa

April 28, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Food Poisoning Bulletin recently received an email from a person who was diagnosed with hepatitis A in Des Moines, Iowa. That disease is spread by contaminated food and person-to-person contact, so it’s very possible that more people are sick.

Hepatitis A is irritation and swelling of the liver, caused by the hepatitis A virus. The virus comes from the feces and blood of an infected person, and it is shed from the body two to four weeks before the symptoms manifest, and during the first week of the illness.

Report your hepatitis A case.

Human beings are the only natural host of the virus. It replicates in the liver, moves through the blood and is present in feces. Most adults display symptoms of the disease, while children are usually asymptomatic.

The virus is contagious and is spread in several ways: through food contaminated with feces, if a person who has the virus doesn’t wash their hands after using the bathroom then touches food or another object, or if you touch stools or blood of an infected person.

 

Read Full Article Here

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Recalls

Diamond Pet Foods Expands Dry Dog Food Recall

Diamond Pet Foods has expanded a recall, announced April 6 for certain batches of its Diamond Natural Lamb Meal & Rice dry dog food, to include one production run and four production codes of Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover’s Soul Adult Light formula dry dog food.

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One bag of the product has tested positive for Salmonella, and the company says the recall of the four production codes is a precautionary measure.
No dog illnesses have been reported.
The latest recall is for:

Soybean Sprouts Recalled Due to Listeria

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Soybean Sprouts from Henry’s Farm Inc. of Woodford, VA are being recalled because of possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination, according to the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

The following products are being recalled:…..

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Articles of Interest

 

 

Scientist Defends Research on Heavy Metals in Oysters

In the two years since the BP oil spill, most scientific research on its effects falls into one of two categories — seafood safety or environmental damage.
Now there are signs science is moving beyond those preliminary assessments to career-defining work that the some researchers don’t want to see misused by others.
That can be difficult in a region known for strong opinions and still divided over whether the Gulf’s message for the rest of the country should be the recovery of its seafood and tourism industries or the possible ecological disaster that may be in its early innings.
oystersnshells-406.jpgDr. Peter Roopnarine, curator of the California Academy of Sciences (CAS), is one scientist who decided playing offense is the best way to navigate those choppy Gulf waters.
To mark the second anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon explosion, Roopnarine announced his team had detected evidence that pollutants from BP oil have entered the ecosystem’s food chain.
Mother Jones, the activist magazine and website, made its story on Roopnarine’s research its BP oil spill anniversary-day story.

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