FSnet Aug. 14/08

BARFBLOG: Beer pong: Breeding grounds for disease?

UK: Bovril recalled in Salmonella scare

UK and IRELAND: Salmonella outbreak linked to Bovril and sandwich spread

WISCONSIN: Food poisoning may have caused inmate sickness

INDIANA: Marion County launches online restaurant inspection program

Food safety starts in the garden

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BARFBLOG: Beer pong: Breeding grounds for disease?
13.aug.08
barfblog
Doug Powell
http://barfblog.foodsafety.ksu.edu/2008/08/articles/food-safety-communication/beer-pong-breeding-grounds-for-disease/
I still own a house in Guelph, Canada, that I rent to students. Last time Amy and I were in Guelph retrieving vestiges of my past – like milk cartons full of vinyl record albums, or Johnny Bower vintage goalie equipment, both of which stayed in Guelph and were donated to others – we noticed the double garage had been converted into a ping pong playing and viewing space, complete with an elevated chair for the referee.
Same with our student neighbors in Manhattan (Kansas). The living room contains a ping pong table.
When not trying to do their best Forrest Gump, these students are probably fans of beer pong, featured in the 2007 movie, Beerfest (below).
According to some UCLA publication,
"Last month, CO-ED Magazine reported that there has been an increase of orally-transmitted herpes due to the not-so-sanitary game of beer pong. …
"When playing beer pong, you have a possibility of getting any type of disease transferable via saliva."
The story has some stuff about throat gonorrhea which could possibly be transmitted or mono. Doubtful. The last tip, however, caught my eye:
"If you and your friends are the type to play practical jokes on each other (say light each other's crotches on fire), I'd keep an eye out for them in beer pong. Their next brilliant idea may be to use toilet water to fill the ball-rinsing cup. If so, you could find yourself in a state of nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and fever—due to feces-contaminated water. Let's hope you're up-to-date with your Hepatitis A vaccination."
http://www.collegeotr.com/university_of_california_los_angeles/beer_pong_breeding_grounds_for_disease_10553



 
UK: Bovril recalled in Salmonella scare
13.aug.08
ITN
http://itn.co.uk/news/2beec1358e9776ad8e958806e8141a78.html
Thousands of jars of Bovril have been recalled after checks revealed traces of salmonella.
Manufacturer Unilever said it was recalling 15,000 jars and 72 plastic tubs of the beef extract sent to stores across the UK "as a precautionary measure".
The alert followed routine checks which identified traces of the salmonella bacterium in a small number of packs produced during a specific period.
The products being recalled are 250g glass jars of Bovril Beef Extract with a best-before-end date of January 2010 and batch codes of L8201XX795, L8206XX795, L8207XX795 and L8208XX795.
Bovril Beef Extract in 600g plastic tubs with a Jan 2010 best-before-end date and batch code L8207XX795 are also being recalled.
The information can be found on the back label of glass jars or on the base of plastic tubs.
A Unilever spokeswoman said: "We have decided to take the precaution of issuing a product recall on Bovril Beef Extract 250g glass jars and 600g plastic tubs after routine internal quality checks identified traces of salmonella in a small number of products.
"The health and safety of our consumers is paramount and we would like to reassure them that only a small volume of production has been affected."
"We have launched an immediate investigation and we are working closely with the Food Standards Agency and relevant authorities to ensure this does not happen again.
"This is an isolated incident and no other Bovril or Unilever products are affected."
Customers can call a free helpline on 0800 146 252 for advice and a refund.



 
UK and IRELAND: Salmonella outbreak linked to Bovril and sandwich spread
13.aug.08
Daily Mail
Sean Poulter
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1044667/Salmonella-outbreak-linked-Bovril-sandwich-spread.html
Fears of a major salmonella outbreak affecting food across the country increased last night following a safety recall of ready-made sandwich fillings and thousands of jars of Bovril.
One person has died and more than 120 have fallen ill due to an outbreak of the Agona strain of the bacteria, which is linked to cooked meat sold in sandwich fillings.
It emerged last weekend that Subway, the world's biggest sandwich chain, had recalled chicken and beef fillings served in its restaurants across the UK and Ireland.
As well as being sold in Subway, the suspect meat has also been used to produce ready-made sandwiches in cafes and canteens across the country.
The meat was supplied by a producer from Country Kildare in the Republic of Ireland which has been identified as a likely source of the contamination.
Yesterday it was revealed that ready-made sandwich fillings containing bacon and chicken from the same supplier are also being removed from shelves.
The fillings were sold under ownbrand labels at Dunnes Stores and Supervalu in Ireland. They were also sold under the brand name of O'Brien's through Tesco outlets in Ireland.
Separately, some 15,000 jars and tubs of Bovril are being withdrawn from UK stores after the discovery of traces of a different strain of salmonella.
In this case, the salmonella was discovered as a result of routine testing.
A Food Safety Authority of Ireland inquiry into the Agona outbreak, which dates back to February, has pinpointed the Dawn Farm Foods plant in Naas, County Kildare.



 
WISCONSIN: Food poisoning may have caused inmate sickness
13.aug.08
Fox 11
http://www.myfoxnewisconsin.com/myfox/pages/News/Detail?contentId=7200273&version=2&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=TSTY&pageId=3.2.1
APPLETON -- Health officials now believe they know what caused 135 inmates at the Outagamie County Jail to get sick late last week.
Officials say tests of seven stool samples were positive for Clostridium perfringens, which is a spore forming bacteria.
The common form of Clostridium perfringens is found in food poisoning and is characterized by abdominal cramping and diarrhea.



 
INDIANA: Marion County launches online restaurant inspection program
13.aug.08
13 Investigates
Bob Segall
http://www.wthr.com/Global/story.asp?S=8836960
Marion County -- Does your favorite restaurant serve up lots of health violations? Starting Thursday morning, you can see for yourself.
For the first time, the Marion County Health Department is putting thousands of inspection reports online.
After eighteen months of development, the department is unveiling its online restaurant inspection database to give consumers 24-hour access to restaurant safety information.
Inspection reports for all of the county's 2,552 licensed restaurants will be included in the online database, according to Tom Beck, a business analyst for the health department who helped design and develop the system.
"This is a website that's really neat for consumers," Beck said. "They will see the same inspection report the restaurateur received, and there's virtually hundreds of thousands of pieces of data."
The online system also includes food safety inspection reports for Marion County taverns, grocery stores, bakeries and schools.
MCHD director Virginia Caine said the system was created after 13 Investigates showed county residents had poor access to inspection records that reveal serious safety violations at many area restaurants.
"Channel 13 actually did a survey that had consumers identify that this was an issue that was important to them," Caine said. "We want to have our consumers way more knowledgeable and this is an easier way to access the info from our department."
WTHR's Food For Thought investigation showed food inspectors found more than 22,000 safety violations at metro-area restaurants in 2006, and about 9,000 of those were critical violations, serious problems that could make customers sick.
But in most counties, finding out about those violations has been difficult. Inspection reports are usually filed away in the basements of local health departments, and on nights and weekends (when consumers are most likely to visit a restaurant) the inspection reports have been off limits because that's when health departments are traditionally closed.
After the investigation aired, thousands of WTHR viewers participated in a survey that showed an overwhelming majority of respondents favored increased access to restaurant inspection reports, including 78% who wanted to see inspection reports posted online.
By implementing an online system, the health department is now providing round-the-clock access to anyone who wants to research restaurant safety.



 
Food safety starts in the garden
13.aug.08
Calaveras News
Ken Churches, Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service, USDA
http://thepinetree.net/index.php?module=announce&ANN_user_op=view&ANN_id=8031
The risk associated with garden produce is small, but it's there. Most outbreaks involve undercooked meat. Rarer modes of disease transmission included raw fruits and vegetables, unpasteurized apple juice, raw milk and water. What does this mean for the home gardener? Use particular care if and when you use animal manure in the garden. To avoid the potential food safety risks, here are some recommendations:
Use recommended food preparation techniques with garden produce. Always wash produce in clean water before eating it. Use a vegetable brush to remove visible soil. Peeling also helps reduce risk. People who are more prone to foodborne illness include young children, pregnant women, older adults and those with cancer, AIDS and other immune-compromising diseases. If a family member is at risk, serve cooked or canned vegetables and fruits for an extra margin of safety. Heating kills bacteria and parasites.
In the vegetable garden, avoid using manure where the edible portion of the crop touches the soil. If you do choose to apply fresh or partially composted manure to the vegetable garden, apply it to a crop with a low pathogen-contamination risk, such as sweet corn. Plant crops whose edible parts contact the soil such as carrots, potatoes, lettuce and melons, in a section of the garden where manure is not applied.
Backyard composting can be an effective way to kill pathogens in manure. But the composting process must be carefully managed. To be certain of pathogen kill, the pile must reach temperatures greater than 130 degrees F. The pile must be turned often to ensure that the cooler material on the edges of the pile gets into the hotter center of the pile. You'll need about five turns during the hot composting phase to assure pathogen kill. After each turn, temperatures greater than 130 degrees for three days are needed to kill human pathogens.
We know that the microorganisms in manure that could be harmful to humans are not adapted for long term survival in the soil. After application to the soil, these pathogens are killed by unfavorable temperatures, pH, desiccation and by predation and competition from native soil organisms. The best advice for using manure in the home garden is: 'When in doubt, leave it out. It is best to keep manure out of a cool home compost pile that is not intensively managed.
This article adapted from Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service, USDA. Please contact the Farm Advisor's office at cdcalaveras@ucdavis.edu or 754-6477 with your agricultural questions. Talk to a certified Master Gardener every Wednesday, 10:00-12:00, 754-2880. To speak with a Master Gardener in Tuolumne County, please call 209 533-5696.

 


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