The Associated Press is reporting that the New Mexico state Department of Health is saying that three more people have been diagnosed with Salmonella bacteria infections that have been traced to Diego’s restaurant in Sante Fe.

Deborah Busemeyer, Health Department spokeswoman, confirmed that there are “now 12 Salmonella cases linked to Diego’s Cafe.”  Busemeyer is also reporting that 10 people from Santa Fe county and two from San Miguel county all at at Diego’s in late July and early August.  Patients range in age from one month to 62 years of age, with the infant contracting the Salmonella infection through breast milk from the baby’s mother, who ate at the restaurant.  Two of the original nine patients were hospitalized.  The investigation continues and involves interviews and testing of patients, food handlers, and food from the restaurant. (more…)

According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the massive, nationwide Salmonella outbreak that was linked mainly to fresh hot serrano and jalepeno peppers imported from Mexico is ending.  This report was made amid reports that contaminated shipments had been turned back at the US border well before the outbreak and that some restaurants and grocery stores are still buying the imported, possibly tainted, peppers.

Federal officials maintain that tomatoes played a role in some of the early illnesses; however, investigations of case clusters that emerged later in the outbreak implicated jalapeno and serrano peppers.  In July, authorities found the Salmonella enterica serotype Saintpaul outbreak strain on a jalapeno pepper at a produce importer in McAllen, Texas and at a patient’s home in Colorado.  During testing at a farm in Mexico, authorities also found positive samples from both irrigation water and a serrano pepper. (more…)

Federal lawmakers are looking to reform the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which regulates drugs and 80 percent of the food Americans eat.  The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) regulates the other 20 percent of food—generally meat.  Despite that the FDA monitors the overwhelming majority of this nation’s food, it only received a fraction of the funding and the staffing of the USDA.

Meanwhile, we have long been reporting on the issue of food regulation in the U.S. in the face of ongoing, often massive nationwide outbreaks of deadly food borne illnesses such as Salmonella, Listeria, and E. coli, to name a few.  Given the recent problems with meat and produce that have sickened thousands and hospitalized dozens in the past couple of months, perhaps our food safety systems needs—if not an overhaul—some changes to better protect Americans. (more…)

In the ongoing fight against the food borne illnesses that have been plaguing our country, effective today, spinach and iceberg lettuce can irradiated to kill certain such bacteria, including E. coli and Salmonella. The FDA issued the food-irradiation rule earlier this week following a wave of Salmonella and E. coli outbreaks, such as the massive 2006 E. coli outbreak in fresh spinach.

The irradiation rule only applies to spinach and iceberg lettuce and doesn’t require irradiation, but permits it, meaning not all iceberg lettuce and spinach will necessarily be irradiated and other vegetables, such as the raw Mexican peppers still thought to be a Salmonella threat, are not included. The FDA has long allowed fruits and vegetables to be irradiated at lower levels targeting insects and mold; the new level will destroy pathogenic bacteria in or on spinach, according to Robert Brackett, The Grocery Manufacturers Association’s senior vice president and chief science and regulatory affairs officer. The Grocery Manufacturers Association was formerly known as the National Food Processors Association. (more…)

Despite Salmonella risks, fresh serrano and jalepeno peppers from Mexico are still being sold in the United States.  Although federal officials say these fresh Mexican peppers pose a Salmonella risk, the pepper are selling for much less than for what their U.S. counterparts are selling them for.  Distributors now report buyers seem to be small Hispanic grocers and mom and pop restaurants; large supermarkets and restaurants are not touching the Mexican supply.

“Mexican peppers still are selling,” says Raul Ramirez, warehouse manager for Ramirez Brothers, a Los Angeles-based distributor of Mexican jalepenos. “Our customers are asking for them.”  Will Steele, CEO of Frontera Produce agrees, saying that Mexican peppers “are growing in prominence.”  Because its buyers—large supermarket and restaurant chains don’t want Mexican peppers, Frontera isn’t importing them, Steele said.  Forty-pound boxes of U.S.-grown jalapenos sold wholesale for $25 to $35 a box early this week, versus $14 to $16 for Mexican jalepenos, Steele says.  Before the warning, U.S. and Mexican peppers were selling for about the same price. (more…)

The Associated Press is reporting that New Mexico state health officials are investigating a Salmonella outbreak involving nine people who fell ill after eating at Diego’s Restaurant in Santa Fe from late July to early August.  Patients range in age from five to 62 and reported becoming sick between August 2nd and 7th.  Most of the patrons—eight of the nine—live in Santa Fe County.  The other diner lives in San Miguel County.  Two of the patients were hospitalized.  The investigation continues and involves interviews and testing of patients, food handlers, and food from the restaurant.

Salmonellosis is an infection with a bacterium called Salmonella and is usually found in food contaminated with animal feces and is a group of bacteria that passes from the feces of people or animals to other people or animals.  Salmonella poisoning can occur when food is improperly stored or handled and when preparers do not wash their hands or sanitize implements involved in meat storage.  People infected with salmonella develop diarrhea—which may be bloody, fever, nausea, vomiting, and abdominal cramps within 12 to 72 hours of infection.  Laboratory testing is required to determine the presence of Salmonella; additional testing can determine the specific type and which antibiotics are needed. (more…)

The Associated Press reports that federal inspectors at U.S. border crossings repeatedly turned back filthy, disease-ridden Mexican pepper shipments in the months prior to the recent Salmonella Saintpaul outbreak that sickened 1,400 people.  The outbreak was ultimately traced to Mexican chilies, but no significant action was taken and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) officials expressed surprise as recently as last week saying that Mexican peppers were not spotted as a problem before.

Meanwhile, an AP analysis of FDA records revealed peppers and chilies were consistently the top Mexican crop rejected by border inspectors this last year.  Since January, 88 shipments of fresh and dried chilies were turned away; ten percent were contaminated with Salmonella; and in the past year, eight percent of the 158 intercepted shipments of fresh and dried chilies were Salmonella-tainted.  Despite this, Dr. David Acheson, the FDA’s food safety chief, says peppers were not a cause for concern. “We have not typically seen problems with peppers,” he said. “Our import sampling is typically focused on areas where we know we’ve got problems or we’ve seen problems in the past, which is why we’re now increasing our sampling for peppers.” (more…)

There is more bad news on the Salmonella front, as a new report says that a dozen Mexican produce companies have been put on alert since mid-July after  Food & Drug Administration (FDA) tests detected Salmonella contamination at their farms or facilities.  The latest import alert was posted to the FDA website on August 12. Produce from an overseas supplier named on an import alert will be subject to more testing and inspection before it is able to enter the U.S.

The positive Salmonella tests that prompted the import alerts included several types of Salmonella, including at least two of the Salmonella Saintpaul strain that has led to more than 1,400 reported illnesses in 43 states, Washington, D.C., and Canada. Initially, the outbreak was blamed on certain varieties of raw tomatoes, but even after the tomatoes were taken off the market, illnesses continued.  In July, the FDA renewed efforts to find the source of the Salmonella outbreak, and focused on raw peppers and other foods served with raw tomatoes. The agency recently declared tomatoes safe, and warned consumers to stay away from Mexican grown jalapenos.  The warning was later expanded to include Mexican-grown Serranos, as well. (more…)

In the midst of a rash of nationwide Salmonella, E. coli, and Listeria outbreaks in human foods, Salmonella has now turned up in pet food.  Mars Petcare US has recalled 100 of its 20-pound bags of PEDIGREE Complete Nutrition Small Crunchy Bites sold at some Albertsons in Southern California and Las Vegas, Nevada.  Although Mars also makes Nutro pet food—which consumers nationwide are blaming for a recent rash of illnesses, and some deaths, in dogs and cats—Nutro products are not included in the Mars recall.

Mars said a “component” that tested positive for Salmonella was inadvertently shipped to its Tracy, California, plant and used in the production of 100 bags of PEDIGREE pet food.  The affected bags indicate “best by” dates of July 7, 2009.  “Our primary concern is the safety and welfare of our pet owners and heir pets,” the company said in a statement.  “Although the finished product tested negative and we have received no reports of illness of pets or their owners, out of an abundance of caution we are issuing a voluntary recall of the limited number of bags of Pedigree Complete Nutrition Small Crunchy Bites containing the component in question.”  Consumers who bought the food should return it to Albertsons for a full refund. (more…)

Mexico is denying blame for a massive Salmonella outbreak that has sickened more than 1300 people in the U.S.  The Food & Drug Administration (FDA) has blamed that outbreak on jalapeno and Serrano peppers from a farm in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas.  But Mexican officials said that their own tests of water and peppers on that farm have not detected Salmonella bacteria.

Since April, Salmonella Saintpaul has sickened 1,348 people in 43 states, the District of Columbia, and Canada.  Salmonella bacteria cause an illness marked by fever, abdominal pain, nausea, gas and bloody diarrhea. Symptoms appear within 36 hours of exposure, and usually last four to seven days. In very severe cases, Salmonella can lead to kidney failure and other complications. Salmonella can be particularly dangerous for children, the elderly and people with weakened immune systems. Some victims of Salmonella will develop a disease called Reiter’s Syndrome, a difficult- to- treat condition that causes severe joint pain, irritation of the eyes, and painful urination. Reiter’s Syndrome can plague its victims for months or years, and can lead to chronic arthritis. (more…)