Injuryboard Commentary - E. Coli

Popular Food Can Make You Sick

Mike Bryant — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 18:46:00 GMT

This past week, the Center for Science in the Public Interest released the list of foods that have the most reported food illnesses. Unfortunately, they may be most people's favorites. This may mean a couple of things:

- All foods can make us sick

- That we don't do a very good job of preparing the foods we eat

- That the more mass produced a food product is, there may be more risks in those processes.

They found that since 1990 the top ten list was:

leafy greens were involved in 363 outbreaks and about 13,600 illnesses.
Eggs, involved in 352 outbreaks and 11,163 reported cases of illness.
Tuna, involved in 268 outbreaks and 2,341 reported cases of illness.
Oysters, involved in 132 outbreaks and 3,409 reported cases of illness.
Potatoes, involved in 108 outbreaks and 3,659 reported cases of illness.
Cheese, involved in 83 outbreaks and 2,761 reported cases of illness.
Ice cream, involved in 74 outbreaks and 2,594 reported cases of illness.
Tomatoes, involved in 31 outbreaks and 3,292 reported cases of illness.
Sprouts, involved in 31 outbreaks and 2,022 reported cases of illness.
Berries, involved in 25 outbreaks and 3,397 reported cases of illness.

The problems were mostly caused by norovirus, E. coli, and salmonella bacteria. Unfortunately, Smith DeWaal the CSPI's head of food safety programs, called the list "the tip of the iceberg" when it comes to food-borne illnesses in the U.S. Because, not all outbreaks are reported to public health authorities.

How do you protect yourself? Sarah Klein, lead author of the report recommends "defensive eating," including keeping food cold and cooking it thoroughly, chilling oysters and avoiding them when raw, and avoiding raw eggs or using them in homemade ice cream.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mike Bryant

Real Stories Behind Food Poisoning

Mike Bryant — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 09:43:00 GMT

There is a real person behind every food poisoning. I'm reminded of that every time I sit down and talk to a family who has lost a loved one. So many times, we here at the InjuryBoard write this food alert or that outbreak. I try to write each story with an eye toward future safety and what could have been done differently. The point is to prevent another similar incident from happening again. I've appreciated it when I have been contacted after a post by a reader who thanks me for pointing out the safety consideration. I think it comforts people to know that something is being done to prevent future issues and even maybe to save lives in the future.

Locally the story of Stephanie Smith, 22 year old from Cold Spring, Minnesota who suffered severe cramping and diarrhea, then kidney failure and seizures as a result of eating a tainted hamburger. She was in a medically induced coma for nine weeks and since waking up, has not been able to walk. She was known as a dance instructor who loved to work with children.

The New York Times looked at the story and provided not only a heartbreaking video of her loss, but also tracked the story as to what it was that caused this tragedy to happen. How the burger came from frozen hamburger made by Cargill, which saved 25 percent in production costs by using a mix of trimmings and a mash-like product from slaughterhouses in Nebraska, Texas and Uruguay vs. whole meat .

Low-grade ingredients are cut from areas of the cow that are more likely to have had contact with feces, which carries E. coli. Cargill was relying upon the processing plants. The result is the type of product that can sicken people. But in this case changes a young woman's life forever.

A simple example of why we need to work to make the food we eat safer. Too many people have been hurt. Stephanie Smith was one of those.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mike Bryant

2 Dead, 28 Seriously Ill After Consuming E. Coli Contaminated Ground Beef

David Mittleman — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 10:00:00 GMT

A few weeks ago, I wrote about the heartbreaking case of Stephanie Smith, a 22-year-old dance instructor in NYC who ended up paralyzed after eating a hamburger patty contaminated with E. Coli. Now fears are mounting to even higher levels, after 2 people died and 24 are seriously ill after consuming ground beef contaminated with E. coli.

The suspect beef was produced by a company in NY State, Fairbank Farms, which issued a recall last Saturday for 545,699 pounds of ground beef products. The products were sold in eight states including Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. The stores that received the meat included Trader Joe’s, Giant, Price Chopper, Wild Harvest, and Shaw’s.

While the recall was voluntary, Agnes Schafer, the spokeswoman for Fairbank Farms, argues that no tests have yet proven that the company’s beef products were the source of the bacterial outbreak or the cause of the deaths and illnesses. Furthermore, Ms. Schafer also states that all of the beef products were 23 to 32 days past their sell-by dates and shouldn’t have been on store shelves anyway. Nevertheless, health officials are concerned that people may still have the meat in their freezers, waiting to be eaten.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by David Mittleman

E. Coli Ground Beef Death Toll Reaches 2

Mike Ferrara — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 20:38:26 GMT

An outbreak of E. coli in ground beef products has sickened more than two dozen people and killed at least two—one in New Hampshire and another in upstate New York.

Now, Fairbanks Farms, the New York State company suspected of producing the tainted beef, has issued a recall of 545,699 pounds of ground beef products.

E. coli is a dangerous bacterium which can cause bloody diarrhea, dehydration, and kidney failure, especially in young children, the elderly, and those with weak immune systems. It was recently found in contaminated beef from Illinois producer Valley Meats; hundreds of consumers became sick from the E-coli in these products.

The products in question are ground beef or packaged beef patties that were made from Sept. 14 to Sept. 16 and distributed mostly in the Northeast. All are stamped “EST 492,” either within the Department of Agriculture’s mark of inspection or near the nutrition facts.

The products went to retailers in eight states: Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Virginia. The stores receiving them included Trader Joe’s, Giant, Price Chopper, Wild Harvest and Shaw’s.

Donna Rosenbaum, executive director of Safe Tables Our Priority, a food safety organization, said…that the nation’s food inspection system needed reform.

“To this day,” she said, “contamination problems are not found by any checks on the products by companies. They’re found when people get sick, and that’s a failure in the system.”–New York Times

As of today, since all of the recalled products are at least three weeks past their sell-by dates, none should still be on store shelves.

If you have ground beef at home with an EST 492 stamp, please do not eat it, and either dispose of it immediately without opening it, or return it to the store for a refund. Even if you cook the beef thoroughly, which can kill the bacteria, preparing it in the kitchen can contaminate utensils and surfaces. Even tiny doses can cause harm.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mike Ferrara

Two Deaths Linked To Tainted Beef

Chrissie Cole — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 00:09:00 GMT

At least 546,000 pounds of beef have been recalled in New York and at least seven other states because beef from a local processing plant has been linked to E. coli.

The tainted meat has been linked to two deaths (in New York and New Hampshire) and several other illnesses.

Fairbank Farms of New York announced the voluntary recall of fresh ground beef produced between September 14 and 16. The meat is packaged with "EST 492" on the label.

The company has set up a consumer hotline and has information and details listed on their Web site. You can find it here.

E. coli poisoning symptoms include diarrhea, vomiting and abdominal pain and can lead to kidney failure called hemolytic uremic syndrome and death.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chrissie Cole

Studies Show E. coli In Ground Beef Not Ceasing

Greg Webb — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 01:00:00 GMT

Studies show that more than 70,000 Americans become sick each year due to E. coli bacterial infections. Most of these infections come from contaminated beef made into the most “American” of foods, the hamburger. Of the 70,000 infected, about 2,000 are sick enough to be hospitalized and in some extreme cases, victims become paralyzed or die; death happens in about 60 patients annually. Although the government does post regulations in order to keep the contamination at a minimum, many feel this is not enough; even the best precautions can only do so much. In a recent survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control, for example, the E. coli bacteria contaminated one of every 200 samples of ground beef.

While companies and government inspectors backstop safety procedures by testing sample meat products for E. coli contamination, a procedure that usually takes at least a couple of days to show results, there are still problems. The first is that companies do not want testing conducted unless they do it themselves. According to a recent article published in the New York Times, many meat producers will not sell to processing companies who test the meat upon the delivery’s arrival, before it is mixed with meat from other companies. Producers are worried a positive E. coli test would force them to recall their entire product, including the meat they sold to other processors. Instead, meat companies require the processors only test the finished hamburger so if there is a contamination, it is impossible to trace it back to a single slaughterhouse. The second problem is that it is physically unfeasible and economically unrealistic to test every ounce of meat; it takes only a little E. coli bacteria to make someone sick. Only irradiation, in which meat is treated with a low dose of radiation, kills all of the bacteria. Though this process is deemed safe and effective, public speculation has helped prevent its spread. Many believe the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) should help to change people’s minds about irradiation in order to ensure the process is more widely used.

Because the producers, processors and government cannot guarantee the safety of meat, they ask consumers to cook it to 160 degrees to kill most of the bacteria.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Greg Webb

Woman's Tragedy Reveals Serious Flaws in Beef Inspection Process

David Mittleman — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 14:35:35 GMT

In a recent article, the New York Times reported on Stephanie Smith, a 22-year-old dance instructor who ended up paralyzed after consuming a hamburger back in 2007 that was contaminated with a serious strain of E. coli. At first, she had bloody diarrhea, which quickly turned to seizures and convulsions. Eventually, her condition worsened to such a degree that doctors were forced to put her in a coma for 9 weeks. When she awoke, she was paralyzed from the damage done to her nervous system. Needless to say, Ms. Smith is no longer a children’s dance instructor.

The article brought to light the serious flaws in beef inspections. In fact, meat companies and grocery stores have been banned from selling ground beef tainted with the virulent strain of E. coli known as 0157:H7 since 1994. Still, ground beef was recalled from nearly 3,000 grocers in 41 states, this summer alone. Moreover, federal health officials cite ground beef as the main culprit for 16 outbreaks of E. coli contamination in the last three years.

Ground beef is often a mixture of several parts of cows, and can even come from different slaughterhouses. Furthermore, meat industry research shows that the low-grade ingredients that go into the making of ground beef are often contaminated with cow feces, which contains E. coli bacteria. Despite this fact, there are no federal requirements for meat grinders to test the ingredients for the E. coli pathogen. Recently, the NYT recently a reply letter to their article from the American Meat Institute, arguing that safety inspections have improved significantly in recent years. However, it is difficult to say exactly how far meat producers are willing to go to protect consumers from E. coli in their hamburgers. Specifically, there is a cost-benefit for meat producers to use various pieces of meat instead of purchasing a whole cut of meat. Indeed, health experts estimate that using the cheaper cuts of meat saves meat producers 25% more than if they were to buy the whole cuts of meat.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by David Mittleman

Nestle Cookie Dough Back In Stores With New Labeling

Chrissie Cole — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 22:32:00 GMT

It’s been nearly two months since Nestle Toll House cookie dough was recalled after being linked to E. coli. Now the company is sending its first shipments to stores.

The new cookie dough will have a blue “New Batch” label and a warning on the package that reads “Do not consume raw cookie dough.”

The FDA has finished its inspection of the company’s factory in Virginia, according to Nestle. Last month, the agency said the strain of E. coli found in a sample of raw cookie dough taken from the Nestle plant did not match the strain linked to a 30-state outbreak.

E. coli contamination is a dangerous bacterium which can cause bloody diarrhea, dehydration, and kidney failure, especially in young children, the elderly, and those with weak immune systems.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chrissie Cole

Cargill Unit Beef Packers Inc. Recall 800,000 Pounds Of Hamburger

Mike Bryant — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 12:37:00 GMT

In early August, the United States Department of Agriculture and Beef Packers a Fresno, Calif., establishment, announced the recall of 800,000 pounds of ground beef because of an outbreak of E. coli O157:H7. Beef Packers, Inc. is a unit of Minneapolis-based agribusiness giant Cargill Inc and recalled:

60 pound cases of "GRD Beef Sirl Fine 90/10." Each case bears the identifying case code W69012 with Use/Freeze by dates of 06/23/09, 06/26/09, 06/28/09, 06/29/09, 06/30/09, 07/03/09, 07/05/09, 07/06/09, 07/07/09, 07/10/09 and 07/11/09.
60 pound cases of "Grnd Bf Fine Sir 90/10 10/60 H". Each case bears the identifying case code W69064 with Use/Freeze by dates of 06/26/09, 06/29/09, 07/03/09, 07/06/09, 7/10/09 and 07/14/09.
60 pound cases of "Grnd Beef 90/10 Fine 60." Each case bears the identifying case code W69063 with Use/Freeze by dates of 06/23/09, 06/26/09, 06/30/09, 07/03/09, 07/07/09, 07/10/09 and 07/11/09.
80 pound cases of "Grnd Beef Fine 91/09 10#/80." Each case bears the identifying case code W69108 with Use/Freeze by dates of 06/30/09, 07/06/09, 07/08/09 and 07/13/09 .
60 pound cases of "Grnd Beef Fine 93/07 10/60." Each case bears the identifying case code W69363 with Use/Freeze by dates of 06/23/09, 06/26/09, 06/28/09, 06/29/09, 06/30/09, 07/03/09, 07/07/09, 07/10/09 and 07/11/09.
60 pound cases of "Grnd Beef Fine 93/07 10#/60 H." Each case bears the identifying case code W69360 with Use/Freeze by date of 06/26/09, 07/03/09, 07/06/09, 07/10/09 and 07/14/09.
40 pound cases of "GRD BEEF FINE 96/04-10#/40." Each case bears the identifying case code W69602 with Use/Freeze by dates of 06/23/09, 06/30/09, 07/03/09, 07/07/09, 07/10/09 and 07/11/09.

The ground beef products were produced on various dates ranging from June 5, 2009 through June 23, 2009 and bear the establishment number "EST. 31913" printed on the case code labels. The ground beef products were distributed to retail distribution centers in Arizona, California, Colorado and Utah. Because these products were repackaged into consumer-size packages and sold under different retail brand names, consumers should check with their local retailer to determine whether they may have purchased any of the products subject to recall. The product has been sold at Safeway Inc. and Sam's Club. Consumers with questions about the recall should contact the company's Consumer Line at (877) 872-3635

If you suffer from food poisoning, you need to get immediate medical care. If it continues or there are long term affects, you should contact an attorney concerning the problem. Early investigation can include the collection of samples, checking for health alerts, and the proper notifying of those who caused the problem.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mike Bryant

Nation's Food Safety System Set for New Rules

Jamie Sheller — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 11:09:05 GMT

Both the Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration are taking steps to improve the safety of our food. The Department of Agriculture is set to conduct regular tests of "bench trim," the meat trimmings added to other meat to make ground beef, in order to prevent E. coli contamination of beef sold to consumers. The FDA is seeking more extensive "mandatory standards for growing, harvesting and processing fruits and vegetables." The House of Representatives already passed legislation strengthening the FDA's food safety oversight powers. Similar legislation is scheduled for Senate consideration in the fall.

Most meat used in ground beef has been tested for E. coli, but inspectors had not been testing the bench trim. Recently, there have been several outbreaks of a virulent strain of E. coli, leading to recalls of tainted ground beef. This particular E. coli strain, O157:H7, can cause fatal illness, and it may survive cooking. According to the American Meat Institute, the industry supports additional government testing of meat.

There have also been several cases of illnesses from tainted produce, primarily tomatoes, leafy greens and melons. The FDA recently issued voluntary guidelines to improve the safety of these crops. Eventually these guidelines will lead to mandatory regulations for handling produce. Enforceable standards and requirements should be complete in two years.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jamie Sheller