Author: Tony Coveny, Ph.D

Norovirus Leading Suspect in Over 60 Student Illnesses. Over 60 students have become ill at the University of Rochester in recent days. Some students have been seeking help at Strong Memorial or Highland Hospital Emergency Departments, while others sought medical assistance at University Health Services. The sickened students are generally reporting symptoms that include vomiting, nausea, and diarrhea. Student Health reports at least one confirmed case of norovirus. The positive test reinforced the strong suspicion norovirus is the cause of the ongoing outbreak. The majority of students affected by the virus are from the Eastman School of Music and River Campus, and…

Reser’s Fine Foods Expands Salad Recall to Canada. Reser’s Fine Foods, in conjunction with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), announced a recall of two salads due to the possibility that they are contaminated with the potentially lethal bacteria Listeria monocytogenes. The recall comes on the heels of a larger US recall by Reser’s Fine Foods, which was announced by the company and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Monday, and additional press releases regarding the recall were sent via email by the FDA on Tuesday. The recall was, according to some reports, triggered by the recall taking…

Iowa Reports Ongoing Shigella Outbreak – 167 Cases Confirmed The Dubuque County Health Department, the Dubuque County Board of Health, and the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) are investigating an outbreak of Shigellosis cases in Dubuque County, Iowa. Officials apparently have been keeping an investigation of a Shigella outbreak under wraps — since it started back in October of 2015. On April 11th, health officials announced the outbreak via press release. There have apparently been 167 confirmed cases of the disease, which causes diarrhea, fever and abdominal pain, in Dubuque County alone since October 1, 2015. Nearby Linn County also…

Colorado Rolls Out New State Inspection Program Jason Trubee, former operations manager for a Denver food manufacturer, recently “got to do what he likes best” during a visit to Celestial Seasonings recently: instead of conducting an outright inspection, he had the opportunity to “learn about a global producer while educating some of its managers about Colorado’s new [inspection] program.” Trubee, now an inspector with the State Manufactured Food Program, experienced inspections as arduous and multi-day affairs “that might leave his company with problems he didn’t know how to fix” in his previous job, he said. The new program is funded by…

Flint Residents Victim of Legionnaires’ Disease; Lead Poisoning Two more people have perished in connection with the Legionnaires’ Disease outbreak in Flint, Michigan and the surrounding areas. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) released a statement yesterday afternoon announcing the increased death toll of the outbreak, which now stands at 12. 91 cases have been identified in total. Officials suspect that the Legionnaires’ outbreak may be related to the increased contamination in the city water supply. The cases occurred between June 2014 and October 2015. The change that likely triggered the outbreak was a change in the…

Progressive Gourmet, Inc., a Starbucks supplier, recalled its 6 oz. packages of Sausage, Egg and Cheddar Cheese breakfasts late last month due to company worries of Listeria contamination. The breakfast sandwiches were sold on English Muffins. The Wilmington, Massachusetts company manufactured the product exclusively for Starbucks Coffee Co. Progressive recalled the sandwiches out of an “abundance of caution,” and no illnesses have been reported connected to the product. The product comes in a 6 oz., clear plastic labeled packaged marked with “Best Before: 07-AUG-2016 on the top. This is the only production run affected by the recall; all other sandwiches are…

Pictsweet Co. is recalling at least two blends of frozen vegetables due to the potential that chopped onions in the mixes may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. The Bells, TN company did not release an additional comment, but a recall from a St. Louis regional grocery chain indicated the onions involved originated from Oregon Potato Co., operating under the name Freeze Pack. The recall was announced by Schnucks grocery chain. The grocer is recalling two Pictsweet mixes: “Steamable Spring Vegetables” and “Seasoning Blend.” The recall comes after Reser’s Fine Foods also recalled products – in that case, 19 types of refrigerated…

Minnesota Officials Investigating Potential University Norovirus Outbreak Public health officials in Minnesota are in the midst of  an investigation into a possible outbreak of norvirus on the University of Minnesota campus. The reports, confirmed by multiple official Twitter posts and local news outlets, indicate that as many as 28 students living in Frontier Hall became ill earlier in the week, exhibiting symptoms that include vomiting and diarrhea. Last Wednesday, the Minnesota Department of Public Health began receiving reports about incidences, and has announced that they suspect the culprit is norovirus, which has caused outbreaks at multiple colleges this spring, including…

A Beaverton, Oregon company announced a recall of 19 refrigerated salad items on Monday morning. Reser’s Fine Foods initiated the recall after one of its ingredient suppliers – a company that supplies Reser’s with onions  notified the company that the potentially deadly bacteria Listeria monocytogenes might be present in a lot of onions that the supplier used during the manufacturing process for the salads. The company’s press release states that Listeria is “an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people and individuals with weakened immune systems.” The bacteria can also cause infection…

Last week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) finalized a new food safety rule – the Food Safety Modernization Act – with the intent to prevent food contamination during transportation.President Barack Obama signed the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act of 2010 (FSMA) into law on January 4, 2011. The purpose of the law is to make sure that the U.S. food supply is safe, shifting the focus of federal regulators to preventing contamination from responding to it. The FSMA has given the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) new powers that enable the agency regulate the way foods are processed, grown and harvested. The law grants the FDA mandatory recall authority -…