Recall/Crisis Management

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A house cat in Oregon has died from eating raw cat food contaminated with Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza H5N1 (HPAI H5N1), and a product recall was initiated. Additionally, cats in California contracted HPAI H5N1 from different raw pet food. 

In this episode of Food Safety Matters, we discuss the top food safety stories of 2024 and their implications, including high-profile foodborne illness outbreaks, the ongoing avian flu outbreak in poultry and dairy cattle, FDA’s Human Foods Program restructuring, rising concerns and evolving legislation around food additives and chemical contaminants, and other topics.

Boar’s Head has responded to a letter from 22 members of Congress probing the company about the recent, fatal listeriosis outbreak linked to its products. Representative Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), who signed the letter, called Boar’s Head’s response “not credible” and “a classic corporate dodge.”

FDA has declared the outbreak of Escherichia coli infections linked to Grimmway Farms carrots to be over. Although the outbreak strain of E. coli did not match the Shiga toxin-producing E. coli strain found in environmental samples, traceback evidence implicates the recalled carrots as the vehicle of illness.

Despite new regulations, food safety programs, and third-party audits, food recalls are expected to reach a five-year high. This article speculates about the reasons for this trend, and identifies a list of precursors that, if identified and addressed, could close critical gaps and help prevent recalls.

Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) recently published its Annual Report 2023–2024 outlining the agency’s food safety regulatory work throughout the past year, including the management of food safety incidents, standards development, surveillance, and other efforts. 

After a second Listeria monocytogenes strain related to clinical isolates was discovered through environmental and product testing, the patient count in the foodborne illness outbreak linked to Yu Shang ready-to-eat meat and poultry products has risen to 19, including an additional infant death.

CDC has announced that the Escherichia coli outbreak linked to yellow onions distributed by Taylor Farms and served at McDonald’s restaurants to be over, and FDA has closed its investigation. However, the outbreak strain was not confirmed in any product or environmental samples.

A Salmonella Typhimurium outbreak linked to Mexican-grown cucumbers has caused 68 illnesses and 18 hospitalizations in 19 states. A recall has been initiated by distributor SunFed Produce LLC.

Following a fatal Escherichia coli outbreak linked to organic carrots that has sickened people in multiple U.S. states, the Government of Canada is warning consumers not to eat recalled products distributed by California-based Grimmway Farms.