Campylobacter Watch

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Marilynn Marchione, medical writer for the Associated Press, wrote a recent article on the decline in fooodborne illnesses reported by CDC.  In the article, she points out that federal statistics show that foodborne illnesses are occurring at record-low rates, but

The trend could reverse in coming years if fruit and vegetable growers do not address problems like those that led to the spinach scare, Tauxe and others said."

"The meat and poultry industry has made great strides. The produce industry has a long way to go to catch up," said Michael Doyle, a microbiologist who heads the University of Georgia’s Center for Food Safety.

Compared with statistics from 1996-1998, CDC’s FoodNet tracking system has reported a decrease in nearly every major foodborne illness.  Campylobacter infections are down 30 percent.  The bacterium, which along with Salmonella sickens the most people, usually is found in raw or undercooked poultry or eggs.Continue Reading CDC reports decline in foodborne illnesses, Campylobacter

From www.about-campylobacter.com


Campylobacter jejuni (Pronounced "camp-e-low-back-ter j-june-eye") was not recognized as a cause of human foodborne illness prior to 1975. Now, the bacterial organism is known to be the most common cause of bacterial foodborne illness in the U.S.  (Salmonella is the second most common cause).

Most cases Campylobacter infection occur as isolated, sporadic events…

1. Name of the Organism:

    Campylobacter jejuni (formerly known as Campylobacter fetus subsp. jejuni) Campylobacter jejuni is a Gram-negative slender, curved, and motile rod. It is a microaerophilic organism, which means it has a requirement for reduced levels of oxygen. It is relatively fragile, and sensitive to environmental stresses (e.g., 21% oxygen, drying, heating, disinfectants, acidic conditions). Because of its microaerophilic characteristics the organism requires 3 to 5% oxygen and 2 to 10% carbon dioxide for optimal growth conditions. This bacterium is now recognized as an important enteric pathogen. Before 1972, when methods were developed for its isolation from feces, it was believed to be primarily an animal pathogen causing abortion and enteritis in sheep and cattle. Surveys have shown that C. jejuni is the leading cause of bacterial diarrheal illness in the United States. It causes more disease than Shigella spp. and Salmonella spp. combined.

    Although C. jejuni is not carried by healthy individuals in the United States or Europe, it is often isolated from healthy cattle, chickens, birds and even flies. It is sometimes present in non-chlorinated water sources such as streams and ponds.

    Because the pathogenic mechanisms of C. jejuni are still being studied, it is difficult to differentiate pathogenic from nonpathogenic strains. However, it appears that many of the chicken isolates are pathogensContinue Reading Information on Campylobacter from the “Bad Bug Book”

Sharon Durham, an Agricultural Research Service Informational Service writer with the USDA, wrote about solutions to Campyloacter contamination in poultry processing facilities in Poultry Today.  Her article was based on research at USDA’s ARS.

One foodborne pathogen of particular interest is campylobacter, which may cause mild to severe diarrhea and fever in humans and possibly result in a secondary, neurological condition known as Guillain-BarrÈ Syndrome. Campylobacter is commonly found in the intestinal tracts of swine, cattle and poultry. It may be deposited onto trucks, trailers and coops when the animals are transported to processing plants.

Continue Reading Preventing Campylobacter contamination in poultry processing

By David Hunt and Bob Stiles TRIBUNE-REVIEW
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Sunday, August 27, 2006

At least six of Jeannette’s 32 bars and restaurants have been deemed clean enough to serve food and drinks this year — even though an inspector didn’t set foot in any of them.

The cash-strapped city lost its health inspector last September. City Clerk Ron Dinsmore said in July that he was forced to rubber-stamp the licenses for the six businesses so they could meet state liquor-license requirements and stay open.

"I’m concerned because there are some we’ve had problems with, but most we haven’t. Most of them are very good," he said. "I extended them only because of the fact that they needed them extended."

Six of 67 counties in Pennsylvania handle restaurant inspections through county health departments, but Westmoreland isn’t one of them. County officials say they aren’t interested in developing a program to monitor health conditions in the county’s more than 1,500 restaurants even if other programs aren’t working.

"We’re not looking to expand the mission of county government. We’ve got enough on our plate, enough financial challenges already," said Commissioner Chairman Tom Balya.Continue Reading Neglecting Restaurant Inspection

Nakatani shows heart after illness
Jockey wins Pacific Classic eight days after being released from hospital
By Jay Privman
Daily Racing Form
Aug 23, 2006
DEL MAR, Calif. – Campylobacter jejuni. It looks like what would print out if you smashed your fist on a keyboard. But those tongue-twisting words are the technical name for the bacteria that afflicted jockey Corey Nakatani two weeks ago, made him violently ill, and forced him to a hospital for five days of treatment.
Only eight days after being released from the hospital, Nakatani won the Pacific Classic on Sunday aboard Lava Man. Yet Nakatani admits he is still not back at full strength. He was so drained from Sunday’s races that he took off the second of his two scheduled mounts Monday at Del Mar after riding his first mount.
“I’m still a little weak,” Nakatani said Sunday, a couple of hours after riding Lava Man. “Being in intensive care a week ago, I’m not going to be at my strongest.”Continue Reading Campylobacter can’t hold jockey back

Monday August 14, 2006
By Stephen Ward
The chicken industry says sales have remained steady despite the scare about high rates of human campylobacter infection.
A University of Otago study that appeared last month said New Zealand’s campylobacter rates were the world’s highest. One finding was that up to 90 per cent of fresh raw chicken was contaminated when sold to consumers.
But the Poultry Industry Association’s executive director, Michael Brooks, believes contamination rates are more like 30-40 per cent.
The association said some regions had seen a minor fluctuation in sales, but the overall trend remained steady.
It stressed that proper cooking of meat killed campylobacter.
The scare came after Meat and Wool New Zealand figures showed a decline in poultry consumption in the year to March, unrelated to campylobacter.Continue Reading Disease scare fails to dent consumption of chicken