Salmonella

Company repeatedly found in violation of food safety requirements

December 7, 2009 -- Washington, DC— Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-3) today called for the closure of Beef Packers, Inc. in the wake of a 22,723 pound recall of beef suspected to be contaminated with salmonella Newport.

The Cargill-owned company has a history of food safety violations, including a nearly 860,000 pound recall earlier this year of meat contaminated with the same strain of salmonellosis suspected in this recall.

The company has also been the subject of a recent investigation by USA Today regarding their participation in the National School Lunch Program, and has been suspended from the program three times for safety concerns.    » read more »

CDC report provides look into foods associated with outbreaks

June 11, 2009 -- Norovirus and Salmonella were the leading causes of foodborne disease outbreaks in 2006, according to a report released today by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The report, based on investigations of foodborne disease outbreaks provides the most recent report of how many illnesses were linked to specific types of foods.    » read more »

Annual Report Indicates Salmonella Continues to Show Least Improvement

The incidence of the most common foodborne illnesses has changed very little over the past three years, according to a 10-state report released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The findings are from 2008 data reported by the Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network (FoodNet), a collaborative project of CDC, U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and 10 state sites.    » read more »

Washington, DC - 02/11/2009 - Erik Olson, director of chemical and food safety programs with Pew Health & Human Services Policy, issued the following statement at today’s House Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Hearing on the recent peanut-related salmonella outbreak:

“The ongoing peanut product recall, widespread illnesses, and eight reported deaths highlight yet again that the nation’s food safety net has gaping holes that must be mended. As President Obama recently said, ‘At a bare minimum, we should be able to count on our government keeping our kids safe when they eat peanut butter.’    » read more »

February 11, 2009 -- Consumer Federation of America applauds Congressmen Dingell, Stupak and Pallone for their strong leadership on food safety. Their bill, the Food and Drug Administration Globalization Act, will do much to improve the FDA’s ability to assure the safety of the food supply. Consumers cannot afford an FDA that does not have the authorities and funding necessary to protect the public health.

The current Salmonella outbreak linked to peanut butter and peanut paste is only the latest example in an unfortunate series of nationwide foodborne disease outbreaks that demonstrate the problems that can occur without strong FDA authority and oversight.    » read more »

WASHINGTON, Feb. 5, 2009 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture today announced that it is suspending, and proposing to debar, Peanut Corporation of America (PCA) and its subsidiary Tidewater Blanching LLC from doing business with the federal government. Effective immediately, PCA is excluded from participating in government contracts or subcontracts, as well as federal non procurement programs. PCA will also be excluded from doing business as agents or representatives of other contractors, including serving as a subcontractor to other individuals or companies doing business with the government.

The suspension will remain in effect for one year and the debarment is proposed for three years, beginning today.    » read more »

February 2, 2009 -- The power of social media is being tapped by the Department of Health and Human Services, its Food and Drug Administration, and its Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to spread important information about the recall of certain peanut butter and peanut-containing products that are associated with the recent Salmonella Typhimurium outbreaks.

The heart of the outreach effort is an FDA-maintained database listing all recalled peanut products. The database (www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/peanutbutterrecall/index.cfm) can be searched by brand name or browsed by product category, i.e., cracker-product recalls. A widget has been created so news, parenting, health care and other concerned parties can access the database information directly from their Web sites.    » read more »

June 13, 2008 -- BURLINGTON – The Vermont Department of Health has confirmed one case of Salmonella that is part of a multi-state outbreak of foodborne illness, with certain types of raw tomatoes as the source of the illnesses.

The adult infected, whose name will not be released for privacy reasons, was hospitalized but has fully recovered.

There are no other cases reported in Vermont at this time. The Health Department is conducting ongoing surveillance for any new cases identified by the Health Department laboratory.    » read more »

Minnesota has identified one possible case; other states have more cases

April 11, 2008 -- State health and agriculture officials are investigating whether there are any cases of illness in Minnesota that may be linked to recalled cereal from the Malt-O-Meal company after at least 21 cases of Salmonella agona have been identified in at least 13 states.

Salmonella bacteria

The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) has identified one case of Salmonella agona in the state that matches the genetic fingerprint of the other states’ cases and the strain of Salmonella found in the cereal that was recalled April 5.    » read more »

April 10, 2008 -- On April 5, 2008 the Malt-O-Meal Company of Minnesota announced a recall of unsweetened puffed rice and unsweetened puffed wheat cereal. In addition to Malt-O-Meal’s own brand, these cereals are sold under multiple labels, including the store brands for Hannaford and Shaw’s Supermarkets.

Salmonella invades human cells: Photo by Rocky Mountain Laboratories,NIAID,NIH (CC)    » read more »

Consumers urged to cook raw chicken products thoroughly and to avoid using microwave

March 28, 2008 -- State health and agriculture officials said today that two recent cases of salmonellosis in Minnesota have been linked to raw, frozen, breaded and pre-browned, stuffed chicken entrees. The implicated product is Milford Valley Farms Chicken Cordon Bleu with a stamped code of C8021. This product is sold at many different grocery store chains.

This the fifth outbreak of salmonellosis in Minnesota linked to these types of products since 1998. The findings prompted the officials to urge consumers to make sure that all raw poultry products are handled carefully and cooked thoroughly, and to avoid cooking raw chicken products in the microwave because of the risk of undercooking.    » read more »

James Peake: VA Research Will Benefit Veterans, Others

March 13, 2008, WASHINGTON – A Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) research project, which may lead to development of a vaccine to prevent Salmonella poisoning, was aboard the NASA space shuttle that launched March 11.    » read more »

October 11, 2007 -- WASHINGTON, Oct. 11, 2007—ConAgra Foods, a Marshall, Mo., firm, is voluntarily recalling an undetermined amount of all varieties of frozen pot pie products in commerce that may be linked to an outbreak of salmonellosis, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service announced today.

Recall Release
FSIS-RC-044-2007
Congressional and Public Affairs
(202) 720-9113
Amanda Eamich

CLASS I RECALL—HEALTH RISK: HIGH    » read more »

ConAgra Foods voluntarily recalling all varieties of frozen pot pies

October 12, 2007 -- SPRINGFIELD – Dr. Damon T. Arnold, Illinois state public health director, is warning consumers today about frozen pot pies that could be linked to a multi-state outbreak of salmonellosis. ConAgra Foods is voluntarily recalling an undetermined amount of all varieties of frozen pot pie products they produce under multiple brand names, including chicken, turkey and beef.    » read more »

Consumers urged to discard product

October 9, 2007 -- Six cases of Salmonella infection in Minnesota residents have been linked to eating Banquet brand turkey or chicken pot pies, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) said today. The finding prompted health and agriculture officials to warn consumers not to eat any Banquet brand pot pies. An investigation is ongoing.    » read more »