It looks like the Salmonella outbreak in Alamosa, Colorado last year was the result of a faulty drinking water storage tank and animal waste.

A report from the state of Colorado’s Department of Public Health and Environment indicates that the city of Alamosa neglected to act on a long-standing recommendation to inspect a deteriorating drinking water tank, said 9News. The recommendation was made years prior to the 2008 Salmonella outbreak that caused hundreds to fall ill and resulted in one death. The report was released yesterday. (more…)

Fairbury Steaks, Inc. a Fairbury, Nebraska, establishment, is recalling approximately 90 pounds of fresh ground beef products that may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) just announced. The products subject to recall include 10-pound packages of “BULK FRESH GROUND BEEF.”

This recall has been classified as a Class I Recall, which means this is a health hazard situation in which there is a reasonable probability that the use of the product will cause serious, adverse health consequences or death. (more…)

A norovirus outbreak has ruined more than one cruise vacation. Now a new study suggests that keeping public restrooms on cruse ships clean could go a long way in preventing norovirus among passengers and crew.

Unfortunately, the study, which was published in the journal “Clinical Infections Diseases” found that public bathrooms on cruise ships are not being cleaned properly. What’s more, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which runs a cruise ship sanitation program, is not doing a very good job of detecting the dirty cruise ship bathrooms. (more…)

An E. coli outbreak that has killed 2 people has been linked to a ground beef processor that, according to The New York Times, stopped testing its ingredients years ago under pressure from beef trim suppliers.

As we’ve reported previously, Fairbank Farms of Ashville, New York – owned by AFA Foods – recalled more than 500,000 pounds of ground beef because of potential E. coli contamination. At the time the recall was issued, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) said that there was an association between the fresh ground beef products subject to recall and illnesses in Connecticut, Maine and Massachusetts. It is now suspected that many as 500 cases of E. coli O157:H7may be tied to the recalled ground beef. (more…)

As we have long and repeatedly been writing, this country has been hammered in recent months over a wide array of food borne contaminations that have sickened many and led to a number of fatalities. It seems that current figures on deaths were underestimating the magnitude of the problem globally.

Reuters is reporting that emerging World Health Organization (WHO) data proves that the fatal ramifications of food borne diseases are more intense than previously estimated and points to some 1.2 million deaths annually in those aged six and over in Southeast Asia and Africa, which is a three-fold increase in adult deaths than WHO believed was occurring world-wide. “It is a picture that we have never had before,” said WHO Food Safety Director Jorgen Schlundt in an interview. “We now have documentation of a significant burden outside the less than five group, that is major new information,” quoted Reuters. (more…)

ABC News just broke with a story regarding the ongoing issue of lax salad product safety requirements. Pointing to a 2006 E. coli outbreak that sickened over 200 people, killing three, “Good Morning America” revealed that, despite newly-implemented safety requirements to help stop bacterial tainting, no requirements exist to test salad products before release to the public, said ABC news.

And, while some food producers voluntarily test, because there is no regulation, program efficacy remains unclear, noted ABC News. ABC also pointed out that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which is responsible for 80 percent of food in the U.S., the agency has had some issues. For instance, its Science Advisory Board released a report that stated, quoted ABC News, that the FDA was “at risk of failing to carry out its mandate, leaving our citizens at risk of grievous harm.” (more…)

We recently wrote that some 31 million children are at increased risk for food poisoning due to delays in tainted food products being removed from school cafeterias.

Now, reports the Associated Press (AP), the House Education and Labor Committee chair is seeking a probe into the potential for the dangerous, sometimes deadly, E. coli pathogen to contaminate school lunches. In September, USA Today, citing a federal audit it obtained, wrote that federal agencies supplying food for schoolchildren are not ensuring swift removal of tainted food from cafeterias. These actions increase the risk of schoolchildren falling ill due to food borne contaminations, said USA Today, according to the Government Accountability Office (GAO), Congress’ investigative arm. (more…)

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is issuing this health alert to warn consumers not to use Pet Carousel Pig Ears and Beef Hooves Pet Treats because the products may be contaminated with Salmonella. The products were distributed nationwide in both bulk and retail packaging for sale in pet food and retail chain stores. Pet Carousel is based in Sanger, California.

The FDA reported that the recalled Pet Carousel Pig Ears and Beef Hoove Pet Treats were manufactured under conditions that facilitate cross-contamination within batches or lots. Although no illnesses associated with these products have been reported, the FDA is advising consumers in possession of these products to not handle or feed them to their pets. (more…)

Two meat packing firms have been named in lawsuits filed by the families of two New England children stricken with E. coli infections.

The first lawsuit names Fairbank Farms of Ashville, New York as a defendant. The complaint, which was filed on behalf of a 12-year-old Massachusetts girl, claims she became ill as a result of eating E. coli-tainted meat that came from Fairbank Farms in September. (more…)

Twenty-eight people have been sickened in an E. coli outbreak that spans a dozen states. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), two deaths may be linked to the E. coli outbreak, and a number of victims have been hospitalized.

E. coli is a potentially deadly bacterium that can cause bloody diarrhea, dehydration, and in the most severe cases, kidney failure. The very young, seniors and people with weak immune systems are the most susceptible to foodborne illness. (more…)