Campylobacter Watch

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21.jul.06
Massey University Press Release
A ban on the sale of fresh chicken meat is the not answer to preventing outbreaks of campylobacteriosis says food microbiologist Associate Professor John Brooks.
He says the media focus on the comparatively high incidence of campylobacteria outbreak in New Zealand has been triggered by incomplete information.
“No clear mode of transmission has been established between chicken meat and humans. Campylobacter is also found in cattle and sheep, ducks and domestic pets, and water and dairy farm effluent have also been found frequently to be contaminated.”Continue Reading Combating campylobacter with common sense

11.jul.06
Helena IR
Laura Behenna
We’ve all heard news reports in recent years of people sickened or even dying from consuming food contaminated with E. coli or Salmonella bacteria.
So I was astonished recently to learn that bacteria called campylobacter cause many more cases of food-borne illness than either E. coli or Salmonella.
“Campylobacter is the leading cause of gastrointestinal illness in the United States, yet nobody’s heard of it,” Laura Hendley, a sanitarian with the Lewis & Clark City-County Health Department, informed me last week.
“Especially in this county,” her colleague Laurel Riek said. Riek added that between July 1, 2004 and June 30, 2005, Lewis & Clark County recorded 18 cases of campylobacter infection, compared with only six cases of illness from Salmonella.Continue Reading Bacterial villains are easy to prevent

03 Jul 2006
Health and food safety experts say they are at a loss to explain a big rise in the number of cases of the food poisoning bug, campylobacter.
More commonly found in rural parts of the country, campylobacter now seems to be affecting larger numbers of city residents.
Donald Campbell, the principal public…

Monday, 3 July 2006
Press Release: New Zealand Food Safety Authority
The New Zealand Food Safety Authority (NZFSA) is concerned about the continuing increase in cases of human campylobacter infection, highlighted in the latest monthly surveillance report from the Institute of Environmental Science and Research.
Campylobacter is a bacterium commonly found in animals and the environment. Since being made a notifiable disease in 1980, New Zealand’s reported cases of campylobacteriosis have risen steadily and health professionals acknowledge it as a major public health concern.
The source or sources of the latest rise in numbers are not clear and are the subject of investigations being undertaken by ESR. However, any increase in cases of the disease also increases the potential for contamination of food to occur from infected individuals, particularly in the home.Continue Reading Concern at increase in campylobacter infection

June 28, 2006
Associated Press
Joe Milicia
MOUNT HOPE, Ohio — Arlie Stutzman was busted in a rare sting when an undercover agent bought raw milk from the Amish dairy farmer in an unlabeled container.
Now, Stutsman is fighting the law that forbids the sale of raw milk, saying he believes it violates his religious beliefs because it prohibits him from sharing the milk he produces with others.
“While I can and I have food, I’ll share it,” said Stutzman, who is due in Holmes County Common Pleas Court on Friday to tell a judge his views. “Do unto others what you would have others do unto you.”
Last September, a man came to Stutzman’s weathered, two-story farmhouse, located in a pastoral region in northeast Ohio that has the world’s largest Amish settlement. The man asked for milk.
Stutzman was leery, but agreed to fill up the man’s plastic container from a 250-gallon stainless steel tank in the milkhouse.Continue Reading Amish-Raw milk

Unlicensed cheese-maker ordered to halt operations
By RICK OLIVO Staff Writer
The Daily Press
Monday, June 26th, 2006
Cheese curds infected with the Campylobacter bacteria are now being blamed for over 100 suspected cases of illness in places as far away as Oregon.
The contaminated cheese curds were manufactured by an unlicensed Highbridge cheese-maker using unpasteurized milk, says the Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services.
Wesley Lindquist was ordered to cease the production of curds and any other dairy products following the outbreak, which apparently began shortly after Memorial Day when a number of visitors were in the Ashland area for graduations and other events. Over 40 confirmed cases of illness have been identified as coming from the tainted curds, and many others from different areas of the state and even other states have also become ill.Continue Reading Bad cheese curds now responsible for over 100 illnesses

BY JOHN SCHMELTZER
Chicago Tribune
CHICAGO – Antibiotic-free foods are not necessarily safer, according to an Institute of Food Technologists study to be released Monday.
The study, conducted by a panel of food scientists and microbiologists, aims for the heart of the marketing campaigns in the last decade by organic food advocates who have suggested there is an overuse of antibiotics and that antibiotic-free foods are better for human consumption.
One such group is the Organic Trade Association, based in Greenfield, Mass., which represents many of the nation’s organic food producers. The association cites 10 studies from 2000 and 2001 of antibiotic use in farming to support its stand that antibiotics have been abused by American farmers.Continue Reading Antibiotic-free food not necessarily safer for people, study says

Unlicensed cheesemaker told to halt production
By JESSE GARZA
jgarza@journalsentinel.com
Posted: June 22, 2006
More than 40 people have become ill after eating unpasteurized cheese curds produced by Wesley Lindquist of Highbridge, state health officials said Thursday.
Test results from six of those people confirmed the presence of Campylobacter jejuni bacteria, a statement from the Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services said.
The bacteria cause nausea, diarrhea, abdominal cramping, fever and vomiting. On rare occasions, those affected develop more severe complications such as temporary arthritis or paralysis, generally after the initial symptoms have disappeared, the statement said.Continue Reading Homemade curds sicken dozens

State health officials are advising people to avoid eating unpasteurized cheese curds produced by Wesley Lindquist of Highbridge in Ashland County.
The cheese curds have been connected to an outbreak of campylobacter jejuni, a form of food poisoning. More than 40 people have become ill with symptoms including nausea, diarrhea, bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramping, fever…

KidsHealth.org
Jun 20, 2006
You probably have lots of concerns about the foods you give to your child. Is it a nutritious meal? Will your child eat it? Is there too much fat? But one thing that may not cross your mind as you’re slicing and dicing in the kitchen is food safety.
Why is food safety so important? Proper food preparations are necessary to prevent your family from becoming sick from food-borne illnesses caused by bacteria such as E. coli, Salmonella, Campylobacter and Listeria (which can cause symptoms such as diarrhea, fever, abdominal cramps, nausea, vomiting, and dehydration). Food safety precautions include knowing how to select foods in the grocery store, how to store them, how to cook them, and how to clean up afterward.Continue Reading Food Safety for Your Family