Campylobacter Watch

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3/13/2006 9:00:00 PM
Mel Robertson
Lifestyle Editor/Reporter
State and county officials continue to investigate a bacterial outbreak at New Richmond.
“The only thing we know is we had an outbreak,” Montgomery County Sanitarian Ron Posthauer said. “Nothing’s been confirmed yet. There may be evidence to point in certain directions but it’s not responsible to speculate.”
In February, the town of New Richmond suffered from an outbreak of campylobacteriosis. More than two cases is considered an outbreak, Posthauer said.
Campylobacteriosis is an infectious bacterial disease, according to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention Web site, www.cdc.gov. Symptoms of the infection include diarrhea, cramping, abdominal pain and fever within two to five days of being infected, the CDC Web site states. Symptoms typically last about a week.Continue Reading Bacteria outbreak still under investigation

Associated Press
Proponents of drinking raw milk say it’s full of vitamins and soothes asthma and other ailments, but only farmers who own their own cows can drink the unpasteurized white beverage in Ohio.
So raw milk fans have turned to “herd share” agreements that allow them to buy portions of a farmer’s herd and get dairy products.
Now the Ohio Department of Agriculture is investigating these arrangements, which an agriculture official says appear to take advantage of a legal loophole.Continue Reading Agriculture department investigating raw milk agreements

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Ohio Department of Health
Selling and Shipping Raw Dairy Products into Ohio is Illegal
REYNOLDSBURG, Ohio (March 1, 2006) — Ohio Department of Agriculture Director Fred L. Dailey is cautioning consumers to avoid falling prey to direct or deceptive online sales of unpasteurized raw milk products, which are not allowed to be sold or offered for sale in Ohio.
“I strongly urge consumers to drink only milk that has been properly pasteurized at a licensed and inspected facility,” said Dailey. “You could be putting yourself or your family at risk by consuming raw milk.”Continue Reading Consumer Alert: Raw Milk Not Licensed or Inspected in Ohio

27/02/2006- The public’s understanding of food risk issues is skewed towards under estimating the danger from common pathogen contamination, according to a research survey.
The survey results could help companies and experts develop communication strategies aimed at ensuring the public understands the various risks posed by food borne diseases and hazards.
The survey researchers concluded that food safety experts have a key role in communicating food risk and thus their perceptions will influence how food risk issues are communicated to the public.Continue Reading Public underestimates risks posed by common pathogens

Sometimes a solution to a problem can be both easy and difficult, particularly when dealing with foodborne disease. When food is properly cooked and handled, bacterial contamination is not usually an issue. But mistakes can be made, and contaminated foods may accidentally be consumed.
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.
“For poultry, washing transport cages with water and disinfectant can certainly reduce the level of Campylobacter, but it isn’t very reliable and doesn’t completely eliminate the microbe,” says microbiologist Mark Berrang, who is in the Bacterial Epidemiology and Antimicrobial Resistance Research Unit in Athens, Georgia. He and food technologist Julie Northcutt, of the Poultry Processing Research Unit, evaluated the role of transport coops and carcass defeathering as critical points in Campylobacter contamination of broilers and broiler carcasses.Continue Reading Finding Solutions to Campylobacter in Poultry Production

February 11, 2006
The Clarion-Ledger
Jack Sunn
Q: Jack, I’ve been trying to find someone in the metro area who sells milk directly from a cow; for example, a local dairy farm that will sell directly to the consumer or someone who raises cows. Can you help me? – Lactose Free
A: The Mississippi Department of Health doesn’t allow the sale of raw milk in this state. “It’s against the law,” said Bill Herndon, an agricultural extension service economist at Mississippi State University. “People who like to drink raw milk think that pasteurization makes the milk bad or lowers the quality. All that does is kill the bugs.”Continue Reading Raw milk sales against the law in Miss.

February 2, 2006
safefood Press Release
www.safefoodonline.com
Recent research, funded by safefood, has indicated a high occurrence of the food poisoning bacterium, Campylobacter in raw poultry, particularly chicken, with 49.9% of retail samples of raw chicken testing positive for the bacterium.
Speaking about the project, Dr Paul Whyte from UCD, lead Researcher, said ‘The study was carried out to provide all island public health data on Campylobacter. Our research showed that a high proportion of human Campylobacter cases are linked with the handling and consumption of contaminated foodstuffs of animal origin, particularly poultry.
Campylobacter is a common cause of bacterial foodborne infection in many countries including the island of Ireland. Scientists have detected the pathogen in raw poultry produced worldwide’.Continue Reading Study identifies campylobacter in poultry as risk factor for gastroenteritis in humans

January 28, 2006
The Tribune (Arizona)
Emily Gersema
Violations included handling food with bare hands, improperly storing food, reusing dirty slicers and choppers, no paper towels at the sink, workers eating in the food service area, dirty aprons, dirty work areas.
Warned on three occasions to fix problems or face penalties.
In the last three years, one of the Valley’s most popular restaurant chains has been cited for more than three dozen major health violations at its four locations, and a lawsuit alleges that undercooked chicken at one franchise sickened a customer so severely he was temporarily paralyzed.Continue Reading Sickened customer sues E.V. Restaurant: Popular chain has a history of health citations

January 25, 2006
Daily Times-Call
Kate Martin
FORT COLLINS — Lugene Sas, owner of Taft Hill Dairy, said Tuesday that his dairy is the one that the state pinpointed as allegedly sickening 27 people.
Tuesday, a dozen raw-milk supporters gathered in the parking lot of Taft Hill Dairy, located four miles north of County Road 54G on Taft Hill Road near Fort Collins.
Ray Norden, 74, said he’s been drinking raw milk for more than 70 years. He said health officials think he had the bacteria in his system, but he said he doubts it.
Rebecca Woodbury of Fort Collins also doubted the test results.Continue Reading Dairyman draws on support after sickness that struck 27

Jan 25, 2006
North Texas E-news
Martha Filipic, The Ohio State University
Where can I find a listing of fats (saturated, unsaturated, etc.) in raw cow’s milk?
Unfortunately, you can’t be certain what type of fat is in raw cow’s milk — it all depends on the cow and its diet. And since, by definition, raw cow’s milk undergoes no processing, it wouldn’t be standardized in any way.
However, the issue of the type of fat in raw cow’s milk is overshadowed by the safety risks of drinking it. In fact, in December 2005 in southwestern Washington state, at least 18 people, including 15 children under age 13, became ill from raw milk contaminated by E. coli O157:H7. Several children were hospitalized in critical condition, and may suffer from long-term kidney problems.Continue Reading Chow Line: Raw milk can give you a raw deal