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U.S – A new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has implied that relying on labeling and cooking instructions might not be sufficient to prevent illness. This is after the study found that more than one-half of respondents reported using an appliance other than an oven to cook frozen stuffed chicken products despite changes to packaging which…
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UK – The Food Standards Scotland (FSS), the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), and the Food Standards Agency (FSA) are looking into a possible salad-related E. coli O157 outbreak in the United Kingdom that has sickened more than 250 people. Although most persons fell ill in August and early September, there have been 259 confirmed cases in the UK with…
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FINLAND – Finnish authorities have discovered Salmonella contamination in some imported spices as part of a food fraud initiative involving Finnish Customs, the Finnish Food Authority (Ruokavirasto) and municipal food control authorities focused on spices, fresh berries, and meat products. Operators whose prior batches were deemed to be non-compliant were the focus of monitoring. Of the 24 spices that were…
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FINLAND – A recent investigation has labeled frozen tomato cubes as the culprit behind a 2021 Salmonella typhimurium outbreak in Finland. The implicated strain had not previously been found in Finland, and it is believed to be the first outbreak in the nation associated with a frozen tomato product. According to the study report printed in the journal Eurosurveillance, a…
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NORWAY – Using information on weather patterns and the incidence of Campylobacter on broiler farms, researchers have developed a new risk model for potential human Campylobacter outbreaks. The model’s creators intend to make the data it generates available through a website that can provide alerts as necessary. The model adopts a “One Health” approach, combining information from the animal, human,…
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ITALY – The Joint FAO/WHO Expert Meeting in Microbial Risk Assessment (JEMRA) has developed risk assessment models for Listeria monocytogenes on leafy greens, frozen vegetables, cantaloupe melon, and ready-to-eat (RTE) seafood in response to a request by the Codex Committee on Food Hygiene. The group also provided recommendations to inform possible future revisions to the Codex Alimentarius “Guidelines on the Application…
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U.S. – The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has developed a prevention plan to stop the diseases caused by Cronobacter sakazakii linked to the intake of powdered infant formula. The FDA received reports between September 2021 and February 2022 regarding four instances of infants who consumed powdered infant formula becoming ill or dying. They started an onsite inspection at the…
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KENYA – The Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS), a government organization responsible for certifying locally produced and imported commodities, has alerted Kenyans to a rice brand that is unhealthy due to high aflatoxin levels. The national certification and standardization office issued a warning in a statement shared on its social media channels about the significant aflatoxin contamination of the Polla…
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RWANDA – The Rwanda Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) has ordered firms to stop selling Toblerone chocolate due to quality concerns. The regulator looked into the situation after complaints about the quality of chocolate recently surfaced on social media. The regulator stated that it had “investigated and found that the chocolates did not comply with standards,”, particularly in light of…
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GHANA – The Ghana Atomic Energy Commission’s (GAEC) Biotechnology Nuclear Agricultural Research Institute (BNARI) claims that it is prepared to fight the Banana Bunchy Top Disease (BBTD) should it ever reach the nation. One of the most severe banana diseases, BBTD, also affects plantains and is brought on by the Banana Bunchy Top Virus. It causes havoc worldwide and causes…
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