Kirkland Signature chicken products recalled

Costco Wholesale Canada is recalling Kirkland Signature brand roasted chicken salad from the marketplace due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination.
The recalled products come in varied sizes, but contain labeling that state the product is best before April 3.
The recall, issued on April 3, was triggered by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency's (CFIA) inspection activities. While the affected products are suspected of a Listeria monocytogenes contamination, no illnesses have yet been reported.
According to CFIA, the affected products were widely distributed throughout Canada, having been made available in the provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Quebec, and Saskatchewan.
CFIA is urging those who purchased the recalled products to not consume them, and to instead dispose of them or return them to the store where the purchase was made.
The Kirkland recall one of several Listeria-related recall of poultry products in Canada since late March.
Sobeys on April 3 recalled various salads containing sliced chicken breast due to suspected Listeria contamination. Those salads were made available in Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan.
A recall was issued for a Lilydale oven roasted chicken breast product on March 25, and on April 1, the recall was expanded to include a Lilydale oven roasted turkey breast product.
CFIA has also not received any reports of illnesses stemming from consumption of the Lilydale or Sobeys products.

Campylobacteriosis cases stabilized, say European agencies

Campylobacteriosis infections reported in humans have now stabilized, after several years of an increasing trend, but it is still the most commonly reported foodborne disease in the E.U. Listeriosis and VTEC infections in humans have increased, while reported salmonellosis and yersiniosis cases have decreased. These are some of the key findings of the European Union Summary Report onTrends and Sources of Zoonoses, Zoonotic Agents and Food-borne Outbreaks in2013.
“The stabilization of campylobacteriosis cases and the continuing downward trend of salmonellosis is good news, but we should not lower our guard as reporting of other diseases such as listeriosis and VTEC infections is going up,” said Marta Hugas, head of European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA) Risk Assessment and Scientific Assistance Department, which stresses the importance of monitoring foodborne illnesses in Europe.
Campylobacteriosis stabilized
Last year’s report showed that human cases of campylobacteriosis decreased slightly for the first time in five years. The 2013 figures have stabilized to the levels reported in 2012. Nevertheless, with  214,779  cases, campylobacteriosis remains the most commonly reported foodborne disease in the EU. In food, the causative agent, Campylobacter, is mostly found in chicken meat.
Listeriosis and VTECinfections on the rise
Listeriosis cases increased by 8.6 percent between 2012 and 2013 and have been increasing over the pastfive years. Although the number of confirmed cases is relatively low at 1,763, these are of particular concern as the reported Listeria infections are mostly severe, invasive forms of the disease with higher death rates than for the other foodborne diseases.
“The rise of reported invasive listeriosis cases is of great concern as the infection is acquired mostly from ready-to-eat food and it may lead to death, particularly among the increasing population of elderly people and patients with weakened immunity in Europe”, said Mike Catchpole, the chief scientist at European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC). Despite the rise of listeriosis cases reported in humans, Listeriamonocytogenes, the bacterium that causes listeriosis in humans and animals, was seldom detected above the legal safety limits in ready-to-eat foods.
Reported cases of verocytotoxin-producing E.coli (VTEC) infection rose by 5.9 percent – possibly an effect of increased awareness in member states following the outbreak in 2011, which translated into better testing and reporting. No trends were observed on the presence of VTEC in food and animals.
Salmonellosisand yersiniosis on the decline
Salmonellosis cases fell for the eighth year in a row, with 82,694 cases –a 7.9 percent decrease in the notification rate compared with 2012. The report attributes the decrease to Salmonella control programs in poultry and notes that most Member States met their reduction goals for prevalence in poultry for 2013. In fresh poultry meat, compliance with E.U. Salmonella criteria increased – a signal that member states’ investments in control measures are working.
Yersiniosis, the third most commonly reported zoonotic disease in the E.U. with 6,471 cases, has been decreasing over the past five years and declined by 2.8 percent compared with 2012.
The EFSA-ECDC report covers 16 zoonoses and foodborne outbreaks. It is based on data collected by 32 European countries (28 member states and four non-member states) and helps the European Commission and E.U. member states to monitor, control and prevent zoonotic diseases.

Foster Farms chicken recall for possible Listeria contamination

• Foster Farms has thus far recalled more than 39,000 pounds of frozen pre-cooked chicken products from its Farmerville, Louisiana, facility due to possible contamination with Listeria monocytogenes. The recall, which was announced September 25 by USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), has made headlines throughout the day among mainstream national, local and business media.
  The frozen Chicken Breast Grilled Strips product was produced August 5 and shipped to retail warehouses in California, Texas, Utah and Washington. The following product is subject to recall: 3.5-lb. Plastic resealable bags containing frozen “Chicken Breast Grilled Strips.” The affected product packaging will bear the establishment number “P-33901” as well as a Best by Date of 08-05-15.
  The problem was discovered during the Foster Farms’ routine in-plant inspection. Some of the product was set aside and held, but the product subject to recall was inadvertently shipped. Food Safety and Inspection Service and the company have received no reports of illnesses associated with consumption of the products.
  Some news outlets have highlighted Foster Farms’ recent Salmonella outbreak. Other outlets have inserted into articles about the Foster Farms Listeria outbreak the unrelated topic of antibiotic use in poultry production and what that means for consumers’ health.

Foster Farms recalls chicken possibly contaminated with Listeria

Foster Farms is recalling approximately 39,747 pounds of frozen pre-cooked chicken products from its Farmerville, Louisiana, facility due to possible contamination with Listeria monocytogenes. The recall was announced September 25 by the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS).
The frozen Chicken Breast Grilled Strips product was produced on August 5, then shipped to retail warehouse locations in the states of California, Texas, Utah, and Washington. The following product is subject to recall: 3.5-lb. Plastic resealable bags containing frozen “Chicken Breast Grilled Strips.” The affected product packaging will bear the establishment number “P-33901” as well as a Best by Date of 08-05-15.
The problem was discovered during the company’s routine in-plant inspection. While some of the product was set aside and held, the product subject to this recall was inadvertently shipped. FSIS and the company have received no reports of illnesses associated with consumption of these products.
Consumption of food contaminated with L. monocytogenes can cause listeriosis, a serious infection that primarily affects older adults, persons with weakened immune systems, and pregnant women and their newborns. Less commonly, persons outside these risk groups are affected.
Listeriosis can cause fever, muscle aches, headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance and convulsions sometimes preceded by diarrhea or other gastrointestinal symptoms. An invasive infection spreads beyond the gastrointestinal tract. In pregnant women, the infection can cause miscarriages, stillbirths, premature delivery or life-threatening infection of the newborn. In addition, serious and sometimes fatal infections in older adults and persons with weakened immune systems. Listeriosis is treated with antibiotics. Persons in the higher-risk categories who experience flu-like symptoms within two months after eating contaminated food should seek medical care and tell the health care provider about eating the contaminated food.

Heat treatment should be part of Listeria control for poultry products

Daily sanitation programs in ready-to-eat meat and poultry product plants are employed to keep product contact surfaces in ready-to-eat production areas clean and Listeria-free. Some surfaces, like electrical boxes, wiring harnesses, or other interior surfaces of equipment are difficult or impractical to thoroughly clean at all, let alone on a daily basis. Steve Tsuyuki, senior director, food safety, Maple Leaf Foods, explained how heat treatment of equipment can successfully reduce microbial counts in even the most difficult to clean places.
Tsuyuki told the participants at the Improving Food Safety, Maintenance and Sanitation Workshop, presented by the American Meat Institute, during the International Production & Processing Expo, that heat treatment is like the semiannual teeth cleaning that we all get at our dentist’s office. We still brush our teeth every day, just as we perform daily sanitation in the processing plant, but the dental hygienist is able to remove tartar that our daily brushing just doesn’t remove.

Killing Listeria where daily cleaning can’t
Listeria is easily killed by heat, and Tsuyuki said that heat intervention attacks bacteria where they live and grow. He said that raising the temperature of the equipment to 160 F for at least 30 minutes is usually enough to kill off bacteria, particularly Listeria, on equipment.
Tsuyuki said that steam tenting is a relatively simple heat treatment process that can be used on many pieces of equipment. He said that when they started steam tenting they had to develop their own protocols. Besides wet steam, you need compressed air, sheet polyethylene to wrap the equipment, a steam manifold, temperature probes, tape and shrink wrap. The compressed air is used to keep the steam out of sensitive areas where it could be detrimental to components.
Maple Leaf uses 10 psi of compressed air to provide positive pressure in sensitive areas and the compressed air also helps to inflate the tent. Shrink wrap and the tape are used to seal the tent. Tsuyuki said that they use 30 psi saturated steam to provide the heat and moisture. He said that wet steam is required to get a good kill of the microbes. By trial and error, he said they learned that you need to turn off any air handling equipment near equipment that you are steam tenting, otherwise it can take too long to get the temperature up inside the tent.

Microbial data determines success
It is important to swab the equipment both before and after steam tenting, so you can determine how much of an effect you are having. The steam and the air pumped into the tent form a sauna bubble. You have to cut back the steam when you reach the target temperature. Tsuyuki said that you need temperature probes to monitor hot and cold spots and to maintain the target temperature for at least 30 minutes, or longer depending on your program. When you are done, you cut the plastic to let the steam come out.
Swab results will let you know how long you need to maintain the target temperature for, and over time you can develop a protocol for steam tenting each piece of your equipment. Tsuyuki said that you don't have to steam tent, because ovens or smoke houses can be used to heat treat some portable equipment, but you need to have moisture as well as heat for effective treatment. He said that clean-out-of-place tanks can work well for small pieces of equipment. Portable steamers can also be effective for small localized areas that can’t go into a clean-out-of-place tank.
Benefits outweigh risks
Steam tenting can be used for things like conveyors, basically anything you can wrap. He stressed that heat treatment is not a replacement for regular cleaning; it is an addition to it. Tsuyuki said that heat treatment can be a replacement for a total tear down.
He said that some companies still don't steam tent equipment, but that they should. Tsuyuki said that benefits of heat treatment far exceed the risk.

Minnesota company recalls poultry products on potential Listeria contamination

Reichel Foods, a Rochester, Minn. company, is recalling approximately 15,880 pounds of ready-to-eat poultry and meat products due to possible contamination with Listeria monocytogenes, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service.
The products subject to recall include:

• 5.6 oz. packages of "Armour Active Packs Turkey & Cheese Wrap" Package Code 1026090112 or Case Code 27815-17994
• 5.6 oz. packages of "Armour Active Packs Ham & Cheese Wrap" Package Code 1026090112 or Case Code 27815-17995
All the products were produced between July 23, 2012, and July 26, 2012, and have a "sell by" date through Sept. 1, 2012. The packages bear the establishment number "P-19941" or "Est. 19941" inside the USDA mark of inspection. The products were shipped to distribution centers in Indiana, Minnesota, Pennsylvania and Texas.
There have been no reports of illnesses due to consumption of these products, and anyone concerned about an illness should contact a healthcare provider.

Buffalo Tyson plant shut down by USDA

A Buffalo, N.Y., Tyson meat processing plant has been shut down by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) after inspectors found violations during follow-up testing.
The USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service was conducting an inspection connected to a recent recall of deli meat produced by the facility. In August, 380,000 pounds of deli meat sold at Wal-Mart were voluntarily recalled after roast beef samples tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes.
"We're working diligently to address this matter, since food safety and quality are essential to the continued success of our deli meat business," said Gary Mickelson, a Tyson spokesman. The plant employs 560 workers, roughly 480 of whom are affected by the "temporary suspension of operations," according to Mickelson.

Brazilian researcher receives award for excellence in veterinary public health

Dr. Luisa Zanolli Moreno has received the Pedro N. Acha Award for Excellence in Veterinary Public Health for her undergraduate thesis, "Molecular epidemiology of Listeria monocytogenes isolated from different sources in Brazil."
The results of the 23-year-old graduate of the School of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science at the University of São Paulo's thesis has great significance to the pork industry. L. monocytogenes is a worldwide foodborne pathogen that can be lethal to both humans and animals; it grows at very low temperatures and adapts to disinfectants, which makes it extremely difficult for the food industry to fight.  

"Dr. Zanolli Moreno's findings are an important step toward improving food safety at a time when there was a Listeria monocytogene outbreak in the United States this past August," said Edward L. Kadunc, president of the Pan American Health and Education Foundation. "This is very much a real threat to consumers in the Americas and worldwide."

The award was created in 1993 to recognize the importance of veterinary public health to the peoples of the Americas and the economies of the countries. Zanolli Moreno is the second Brazilian ever to receive the honor.