Pepsico finds dangerous fungicide in Orange Juice- Tropicana
Filed under: Dangerous Foods, Fungicide, Germs and Cleaniness Tips, Is it Safe?
(Reuters) – PepsiCo Inc said company tests of its Tropicana orange juice showed low levels of a potentially dangerous fungicide, but levels were below federal safety concerns and did not pose a health risk. Article continues after question.
***What is a fungicide anyway?***Wiki
Fungicides are chemical compounds or biological organisms used to kill or inhibit fungi or fungal spores.[1] Fungi can cause serious damage in agriculture, resulting in critical losses of yield, quality and profit. Fungicides are used both in agriculture and to fight fungal infections in animals. Chemicals used to control oomycetes, which are not fungi, are also referred to as fungicides as oomycetes use the same mechanisms as fungi to infect plants.[2]
Fungicides can either be contact, translaminar or systemic. Contact fungicides are not taken up into the plant tissue, & only protect the plant where the spray is deposited; translaminar fungicides redistribute the fungicide from the upper, sprayed leaf surface to the lower, unsprayed surface; systemic fungicides are taken up & redistributed through the xylem vessels to the upper parts of the plant. New leaf growth is protected for a short period.
Most fungicides that can be bought retail are sold in a liquid form. A very common active ingredient is sulfur,[3] present at 0.08% in weaker concentrates, and as high as 0.5% for more potent fungicides. Fungicides in powdered form are usually around 90% sulfur and are very toxic. They are also found in Coke products, including juices like Simply Orange and Minute Maid Orange juice. The oranges from Brazil were sprayed with fungicides by the farmers. Cola-Cola Co. said Wednesday (1/11/12) it found an unapproved fungicide in orange juice made by Coke and its competitors, and alerted federal regulators that some Brazilian growers had sprayed trees with the substance. The beverage giant, which makes Simply Orange and Minute Maid, would not say which brands had shown the fungicide. Both brands contain juice from Brazil.
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The company said in a statement on Saturday it was conducting additional tests after the Food and Drug Administration announced on Wednesday that it would temporarily halt orange juice imports and remove any juice found to have dangerous amounts of the fungicide carbendazim.
The scare was triggered when soft-drink giant Coca-Cola Co, maker of Minute Maid orange juice, said it had discovered carbendazim in shipments from Brazil and alerted U.S. authorities about a potential industry-wide problem.
Carbendazim is used in Brazil to combat blossom blight and black spot, a type of mold that grows on orange trees.
But in the United States, its use is limited to non-food items such as paints, textiles and ornamental trees, although U.S. authorities allow trace amounts of carbendazim in 31 food types including grains, nuts and some non-citrus fruits.
The FDA said low levels of carbendazim are not dangerous and the agency had no plans for a recall.
“The results we have to date confirm that the levels of fungicide in the imported Brazilian juice we tested are below the levels the agencies said raise safety concerns,” PepsiCo said. “We will continue to test, as we take this matter seriously, and we’re working aggressively to address any concerns.”
Orange juice futures prices hit record highs on the fungicide reports, then declined.
On Friday, U.S. health regulators cleared the way for the first shipments of imported orange juice to enter the country since January 4, when authorities began testing for the fungicide in juice products from Brazil.
The FDA said final tests confirmed that three samples of Canadian orange juice were negative for the fungicide carbendazim. Test results have yet to be announced for 28 import samples from Brazil, Mexico and Canada.
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Giant Eagle Shredded Iceberg Lettuce possible listeria
Giant Eagle Shredded Iceberg Lettuce
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Cantaloupes have killed 13 people with outbreak of listeria.
Filed under: Dangerous Foods, Food Poisoning, Listeria, Listeriosis, Recall, Recalled Foods
At least 13 people are dead amid 72 sickened in 18 states in an outbreak of listeria food poisoning tied to contaminated cantaloupes, federal health officials said Tuesday.
The figures were the latest confirmed as of Monday morning, according to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report. But they may well rise in the still-widening outbreak that now ranks as the deadliest in the United States in more than a decade.
State and local health officials in Wyoming and Kansas are investigating three additional deaths that may be connected.
In 1998, an outbreak of listeria infections caused by listeria-contaminated hot dogs and deli meats killed 21 people, CDC records show.
Most of the deaths and illnesses in the outbreak tied to whole cantaloupes grown and shipped by Jensen Farms of Holly, Colo., have targeted the elderly, pointing out the lethal potential of infections from listeria monocytogenes in vulnerable populations.
“It’s basically a feature of listeriosis itself. It affects people who have other counts against them,” said Dr. Robert Tauxe, deputy director of the division of foodborne, waterborne and fungal infections at the CDC. “It’s just a severe infection.”
Victims range in age from 35 to 96 years, with an average age of 78. But most of the infections from four outbreak strains of listeria have occurred in people older than 60, the report said. CDC officials now think the illnesses began several days sooner than previously thought, with illnesses starting on or after July 31. People can become ill up to several weeks after eating food contaminated with listeria.
Deaths have been reported in eight states, including four in New Mexico, two in Colorado, two in Texas and one each in Kansas, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska and Oklahoma.
Severe illness, stillbirths
Listeria is a common bacterium that typically causes mild illness in healthy people, but can cause severe illness in older people and those with compromised immune systems. It also can cause miscarriages and stillbirths in pregnant women and severe infections in new babies. Listeria infections lead to about 1,600 serious illnesses each year and about 260 people die, according to the CDC.
The latest outbreak has been detected only in Rocky Ford cantaloupes processed and shipped to at least 25 states by Jensen Farms. Federal Food and Drug Administration officials have detected evidence of the outbreak strains of listeria in packing houses and on equipment at the site. Jensen Farms issued a voluntary recall of the whole fruit on Sept. 14; Carol’s Cuts LLC, a Kansas food processor, issued a recall for nearly 600 pounds of cut fresh cantaloupe and fruit medley containing cantaloupe on Friday.
The Rocky Ford-brand cantaloupes from Jensen Farms were shipped from July 29 through Sept. 10 to Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia and Wyoming.
While it’s not clear yet clear exactly how the cantaloupes became contaminated, the fruit is susceptible because of its rough, porous skin and soft, succulent interior. In addition, knives can carry bacteria from the outside of the melon into the flesh when they slice through.
Despite the recall, FDA officials are concerned that the Rocky Ford melons may remain in consumers’ homes. Listeria can survive and grow even when refrigerated, so any suspect fruit should be discarded, officials say.
Overall, the listeria poisoning in cantaloupe now ranks as the third deadliest outbreak in U.S. history, a survey of foodborne illness data reported by the CDC’s Foodborne Outbreak Online Database, or FOOD, in other CDC reports and information logged by Seattle food poisoning lawyer Bill Marler’s firm.
CDC estimates that about 48 million people in the U.S. each year get sick from tainted food, with about 128,000 hospitalized and 3,000 deaths.
Here’s a summary of U.S. food poisoning outbreaks with the largest tolls.
- Jalisco Mexican Products Inc., Artesia, Calif., January 1985. Mexican-style fresh cheese contaminated with listeria caused 52 deaths, including many stillbirths, although a CDC spokeswoman didn’t know how many.
- Bil Mar Foods, Zeeland, Mich., October 1998. Hot dogs and deli meats contaminated with listeria left 101 people hospitalized with infections and 21 deaths.
- Peanut Corp. of America, Blakely, Ga., September 2008. Peanut butter and peanut paste contaminated with salmonella Typhimurium sickened 714, and led to 166 hospitalizations and nine deaths.
- Pilgrim’s Pride Corp., Franconia, Pa., July 2002. Sliced turkey and deli meat contaminated with listeria led to 54 illnesses and eight deaths, including three stillbirths.
- Cargill Turkey Products Inc., Waco, Texas, May 2000. Turkey deli meat tainted with listeria left 29 ill and hospitalized and led to seven deaths, including three miscarriages or stillbirths.
- Dole Natural Selection Foods, San Juan Bautista, Calif., August 2006. Spinach tainted with E. coli O157:H7 sickened 238, hospitalized 103 people and led to five deaths.
- SanGar Fresh Cut Produce, San Antonio, Texas, October 2010. Celery contaminated with listeria sickened 10 people, including five who died.
- Jack in the Box, San Diego, Calif., November 1992. Ground beef contaminated with E. coli O157 led to 708 illnesses and four deaths.
- Chi-Chi’s restaurant, Beaver, Penn., October 2003. Hepatitis A infections tied to green onions sickened 565 people, left 128 hospitalized and caused three deaths.
- Raw restaurant-prepared tomatoes. December 1998. Contamination with the rare salmonella Baildon bacteria in restaurant-prepared cut tomatoes shipped to several states left 86 ill, 16 hospitalized and three dead.
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Ban on E. Coli in Ground Beef Is to Extend to 6 More Strains
Filed under: Banned Foods, Beef Recalls, Caution with these Foods, e-coli, Product Recalls, Recall, Recalled Foods
The federal government will ban the sale of ground beef tainted with six toxic strains of E. coli bacteria that are increasingly showing up as the cause of severe illness from food. Officials have been under pressure from food safety advocates and some elected officials to do more to keep the potentially deadly bacteria out of meat, but the beef industry said the move was not needed and could force the price of ground beef to rise.
To help the ground beef industry prepare, the rule will begin next March.
Bob Nichols/United States Department of Agriculture, via Associated Press
“We’re doing this to prevent illness and to save lives,” said Dr. Elisabeth Hagen.
The new rule, which officials said would be announced on Tuesday, means that six relatively rare forms of E. coli will be treated the same as their notorious and more common cousin, a strain called E. coli O157:H7. That strain has caused deaths and illnesses and prompted the recall of millions of pounds of ground beef and other products. It was banned from ground beef in 1994 after an outbreak killed four children and sickened hundreds of people.
“We’re doing this to prevent illness and to save lives,” said Dr. Elisabeth Hagen, the head of food safety for the Agriculture Department, which regulates meat. “This is one of the biggest steps forward in the protection of the beef supply in some time.”
It is not illegal to sell fresh meat or poultry containing most toxic bacteria, like salmonella; they are frequently found on groceries’ meat, and thorough cooking typically kills the pathogens. But since the 1994 outbreak, which involved hamburgers served at Jack in the Box restaurants, regulators have treated E. coli in ground beef differently.
Many people eat rare or undercooked ground beef, and if it is tainted, resulting illnesses can be deadly. Toxic E. coli, in its most common O157 form, is so virulent that just a few organisms can make people violently sick. The toxic E. coli live in the digestive tracts of cows and can get on meat during slaughter. It can cause bloody diarrhea, stomach cramps and, in severe cases, kidney failure.
In recent years, scientists found that several other strains of E. coli in food were also making people sick, and they identified the six most potent, called the Big Six non-O57s. Beginning at least four years ago, the U.S.D.A. began considering extending its ban to those additional toxic strains.
But the American Meat Institute, an industry group, has argued that safety measures already in place are sufficient. On Monday, the group was highly critical of the extended ban.
“Imposing this new regulatory program on ground beef will cost tens of millions of federal and industry dollars — costs that likely will be borne by taxpayers and consumers,” the group said in a statement. “It is neither likely to yield a significant public health benefit nor is it good public policy.”
While several outbreaks caused by the Big Six strains have been linked to produce, the group pointed to the fact that only one has been related to ground beef. In that outbreak, last year, three people fell ill.
“It’s just not supported by the science,” James H. Hodges, the institute’s executive vice president, said in an interview.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that E. coli strains other than O157:H7 cause nearly 113,000 illnesses each year, one-third of which can be attributed to tainted beef, according to U.S.D.A. officials. Until recently, few cases were reported, however, because most medical labs were not equipped to test for the less common forms.
The Agriculture Department will begin enforcing the rule in March, to give the meat industry time to prepare. The rule will apply to hamburger meat and trim or beef scraps that go into it, as well as some other products, like steaks that have been tenderized with machines that use needles to poke minute holes in the surface. Some meat processors have begun to test for the six strains in recent months in anticipation of federal action, and many others will most likely begin testing once the government begins its own testing.
Under the rule, raw meat containing the Big Six E. coli cannot be sold to the public. Currently, most packing plants divert meat containing E. coli O157:H7 for use in cooked products, and will most likely do the same with meat containing the new strains, as well. The bacteria is killed by heating the meat to 160 degrees.
While the new rule significantly expands the Agriculture Department’s beef ban, it does not include all forms of toxic E. coli. A highly virulent strain of the bacteria that caused dozens of deaths among people who ate contaminated sprouts in Europe this summer is not one of the Big Six because it has not been detected as a cause of illness in the United States.
Dr. Hagen said the list of banned pathogens might grow. “This is where we started and it doesn’t rule out the possibility that we would consider other pathogens in the future,” she said.
The new rule highlighted the patchwork and often confusing nature of food safety regulation, where most meat is under the jurisdiction of the U.S.D.A. while most other foods, including produce, are regulated by the Food and Drug Administration. The F.D.A. already considers it illegal to sell food containing any bacteria, including toxic forms of E. coli or other substances that could make people sick.
Dr. Hagen also said the rule did not conflict with the Obama administration’s push to cut back on regulation that could increase costs for business at a time of economic hardship.
“There’s really no inconsistency between having a strong economy and having a safe food supply,” Dr. Hagen said. The U.S.D.A. estimated that the rule would cost the industry up to $10 million a year for testing and holding meat back from the fresh ground beef market.
“The amount this is going to cost is insignificant compared to the lives that will be saved,” said Senator Kirsten E. Gillibrand, Democrat of New York, who pushed for the expanded rule.
After the U.S.D.A. banned the O157 form of E. coli from ground beef in 1994, the meat industry sued to block the move, but the agency prevailed in court.
Mr. Hodges, of the meat institute, said the group had yet to see a full version of the rule and would consult with its members before deciding how to respond.
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Ground Turkey recalled-Salmonella
Filed under: Product Recalls, Recall, Recalled Foods, Salmonella
WASHINGTON — Minnesota-based Cargill Inc. recalled more ground turkey products Sunday because a test showed salmonella in a sample from an Arkansas plant less than a month after production resumed following an earlier recall and shutdown.
The company recalled 36 million pounds of ground turkey last month after a salmonella outbreak that federal health officials say had sickened 107 people in 31 states by Aug. 11. One person died.
That recall covered products from Cargill’s plant in Springdale, Ark.
The company shut down the plant but said Aug. 17 it had resumed limited production after the U.S. Department of Agriculture approved additional safety measures.
The USDA said Sunday that Cargill was recalling about 185,000 pounds of ground turkey products made after production resumed because a sample tested positive for salmonella. No illnesses linked to those products have been reported.
Cargill spokesman Mike Martin did not immediately return a phone message left Sunday.
Earlier Article
A Minnesota-based food company recalled about 185,000 pounds of ground turkey Sunday that may be contaminated with salmonella.
The voluntary recall by Cargill Inc. comes about a month after the company recalled 36 million pounds of fresh and frozen ground turkey that health officials believe caused illness in more than 100 people in 26 states and at least one death.
The recalled turkey came from the same Cargill plant in Springdale, Ark., that was the source of the tainted turkey recalled in August.
Health officials say the recalled turkey contains Salmonella Heidelberg, a strain of salmonella that is resistant to most commonly prescribed antibiotics.
The latest recalled turkey is labeled with the brand names Honeysuckle White, HEB and Kroger. All packages include the establishment number P-963 inside the USDA mark of inspection.
Cargill has posted a list of the recalled products on its website.
In a statement, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said it had not found any illnesses caused by the latest turkey recalled.
The recalled turkey was produced at the Arkansas plant on Aug. 23, 24, 30 and 31. Federal health officials said they collected samples at the plant after the previous recall and found turkey collected on Aug. 24 tested positive for Salmonella Heidelberg.
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Deadly cucumbers with E.coli can kill you! 5 dead and hundreds sick
Killer Cucumber’ Bug From Spain Hits Britain
A person in Britain has been diagnosed with a lethal strain of E.coli, believed to originate in organic cucumbers.
The bacteria has killed nine people in Germany, with almost 300 people being admitted to hospital. Cases have also been reported in Sweden, Denmark and the Netherlands.
The outbreak is believed to have originated in organic cucumbers grown in Spain, although there are suggestions that the bacteria has been found in cucumbers grown in the Netherlands.
The advice now to people travelling to Germany is not to eat cucumbers, raw tomatoes or lettuce.
The British Health Protection Authority has confirmed that three German nationals currently in Britain have fallen ill. One of those cases has been confirmed as having the infection which is causing this outbreak.
A spokeswoman for the HPA said the outbreak in Germany was “very, very serious” and although the bug was infectious, there had been no reports of secondary infection yet in the UK.
E.coli bacteria like these are responsible for the outbreak across Europe
Dr Dilys Morgan, head of the gastrointestinal, emerging and zoonotic infections department at the HPA, said: “The HPA is actively monitoring the situation very carefully and liaising with the authorities in Germany, the European Centre for Disease Control and the World Health Organisation as to the cause of the outbreak. E.coli bacteria like these are responsible for the outbreak across Europe.
“We are keeping a close watch for potential cases reported in England and are working with colleagues in the devolved administrations to recommend they do the same.
“In addition we are in the process of alerting health professionals to the situation and advising them to urgently investigate potential cases with a travel history to Germany.”
In Germany concern is growing. The country’s National Disease Control Centre has confirmed 60 new cases were reported in the last 24 hours.
A spokesman for the German consumer affairs minister Ilse Aigner said: “The European Union internal market has very strong safety rules and we expect all EU states to observe them.”
He added that, for the moment, “one can only speculate about the causes” of the outbreak.
It [HUS] contains some very nasty toxins which can go straight to your kidneys and cause kidney failure, and it’s very difficult to treat.
British microbiologist Ron Cutler
In Spain, a spokesman for the AESA food safety agency said investigations were also under way.
“The Andalusian authorities are investigating to find out where the contamination comes from and when it took place,” he said.
“This type of bacteria can contaminate at the origin or during handling of the product.”
There has been no report of contamination within Spain, AESA said.
Those worse hit by the infection contract HUS, a condition which can have severe effects.
British microbiologist Ron Cutler told Sky News: “It contains some very nasty toxins which can go straight to your kidneys and cause kidney failure, and it’s very difficult to treat.
“For those who are treated, around 90% of treatments can be successful, but one in 10 of those people could have damaged kidneys in later life.”
The Food Standards Agency has confirmed that the offending cucumbers have not been on sale at any outlets in the UK.
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Pig Ear treats for dogs recalled, salmonella contamination feared
Filed under: Pet Food Safety, Pets-Dogs-Cats, Product Recalls, Recall, Salmonella
An Illinois company is recalling pet chews made of pig’s ears because they could be contaminated with salmonella.
One illness, to a dog in Missouri, has been linked to the chews, called Pig Ears for Pet Treats. The product is being recalled by the Keys Manufacturing Co. Inc. of Paris, Ill.
Salmonella can affect animals, and there is risk to people from handling contaminated pet products.
The bacteria can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, elderly people and those with weakened immune systems. Symptoms include fever, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. Pets with salmonella may be lethargic and have diarrhea or bloody diarrhea fever and vomiting.
The pet treats were distributed in Arkansas, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia.
Consumers can return the pet treats to the place of purchase for a full refund.
Online:
Company website: http://www.keysmanufacturing.com
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Melamine Tainted Milk Powder Still Being Stockpiled in China
Filed under: Caution with these Foods, Children Products Recalled, china, China Product Safety, Dangerous Foods, Effects of Melamine, Melamine, Product Recalls, Recall, Recalled Foods, U.S.A and Melamine Scare, What it is?
China was fighting to maintain public confidence in its food safety after a massive stockpile of melamine-tainted milk powder was seized during raids on warehouses in the nation’s biggest city.
The seizures in Chongqing come three years after the 2008 Sanlu milk scandal, in which three babies died and 300,000 others were sickened by melamine-tainted milk in an episode that fatally undermined already fragile public trust in the government’s ability to keep food safe.
The discovery of the tainted milk powder, which was due to be made into pastry and ice-cream, has drawn attention to the inability of China’s government to police China’s vast and fragmented food chain.
In a bid to restore confidence, the city authorities in Chongqing, a municipal area with 35m inhabitants, have announced a 100-day crackdown on food and drug fraud in a mirror-image of a crackdown last year on mafia crime.
On Monday some 7,900 police in Chongqing were reportedly deployed to conduct city-wide raids on 600 premises suspected of producing illegal or fake food and pharmaceuticals.
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Cucumbers recalled in nine states
Filed under: e-coli, Product Recalls, Recall, Recalled Foods, Salmonella
A North Carolina vegetable and fruit distributor has recalled cucumbers distributed to nine states, including Illinois and Indiana, after some of the vegetables distributed to Florida were found contaminated with salmonella, according to the company. Only one lot of about 1,600 cartons of cucumbers distributed to wholesalers is affected, with 139 of the cartons distributed in Illinois and 30 distributed in Indiana, according to a news release from L&M Companies, Inc., of Raleigh, N.C., on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Web site. Because the cucumbers were picked on March 29 and FDA guidelines indicate cucumbers are fresh for 10 to 14 days after being harvested, they are already largely past their shelf life, the company said in the relase. Of the 169 cartons of cucumbers distributed in Illinois and Indiana, 50 contained about 50 pounds of cucumbers each and 119 contained 24 cucumbers each, company spokeswoman Lee Anne Oxford said in an email. Of those, 50 of the 50-pound cartons and 89 of the 24-count cartons were distributed in Illinois, and all the cartons distributed in Indiana were 24-count cartons, she said. That works out to a total of about 5,000 pounds of cucumbers. L&M was not disclosing the wholesale distributors of the cucumbers, because they may have sold the produce to various retailers or restaurants. However, “The company has accounted for the entire lot of recalled product and requested that customers who may still have the recalled product in inventory remove it from commerce and destroy it immediately,” L&M said in the news release. FDA inspectors found salmonella on cucumbers in a cooler at Four Seasons Produce of Central Florida, Inc. on April 13, and informed L&M. The company recalled the entire lot of cucumbers harvested in south Florida on March 29; the largest number of cucumbers were distributed in Florida and Mississippi, but other than Illinois and Indiana, the bulk cucumbers also were sold to wholesalers in New York, Tennessee, Nebraska, Wyoming and Texas. Because the cucumbers were distributed to wholesalers, they may have been distributed to other states as well, according to the company. There are no reports of people becoming ill after having eaten the cucumbers, according to the company. Salmonella is a bacteria that can cause serious or even fatal infections in young children, and others with weakened immune systems. Salmonella symptoms include fever, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. The bulk cartons are marked Nature’s Delight and have lot number PL-RID-002990. Anyone with questions about the recall can call L&M at 919-981-8003, although the hotline is only staffed Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Central Time. Messages left over the weekend will be returned, according to the company.
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Fecal Matter on 72% of all grocery cart handles, (and E. coli too!) Yuck
Filed under: e-coli, Germs and Cleaniness Tips, Is it Safe?, Tips on Food Safety
Professor Charles Gerba, the lead researcher, swabbed the handles of 85 carts in four states for bacterial contamination.
Gerba says 72% of the carts had a positive marker for fecal bacteria. When they examined some of the samples, they found Escherichia coli, also known as E. coli, on half of them.
Researchers say they actually found more fecal bacteria on grocery cart handles than you would typically find in a bathroom, mainly because bathrooms are disinfected more often than shopping carts.
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