This episode of Food Safety Five discusses several foodborne pathogens that have been recently highlighted by researchers due to their unusual nature, emergence, and increasing public health significance, including a rare Salmonella strain, an STEC/ETEC hybrid, Group B Streptococcus, and drug-resistant Shigella.
The E. coli outbreak involving Raw Farm unpasteurized dairy products has ended with one raw cheese sample matching isolates from a different 2025 outbreak. In an April 29 hearing, Congresspeople questioned whether U.S. Health Secretary Kennedy influenced FDA’s failure to mandate a recall.
In 2025, a genetically unique hybrid STEC/STEC strain was the cause of a foodborne illness outbreak that affected exclusively adults, with 90 percent of patients developing hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) and three deaths occurring.
The outbreak strain of Salmonella Bochum is extremely rare. Children and adolescents aged 2–15 years represent 75 percent of outbreak patients. Patient interviews and a case-control study point to a certain brand of chocolate-hazelnut spread as the vehicle of illness.
During its investigation of an ongoing Escherichia coli O157:H7 outbreak involving Raw Farm-brand unpasteurized cheddar cheese, FDA detected E. coli in a product sample not matching the current outbreak strain, but instead matching a strain from a different 2025 outbreak.
The company says the recall is being issued “under protest” and “as a path forward,” while continuing to contest the epidemiological evidence provided by FDA.
Redacted details include the importer of the implicated mangoes, the country in which the mangoes were grown, and the number and names of states in which outbreak cases were reported.
Although FDA was unable to find a cause of contamination, a single supplier of the contaminated moringa powder was identified. Affected products, which were sold under the Rosabella brand and distributed by Ambrosia Brands LLC, have been recalled.
The Interagency Food Safety Analytics Collaboration (IFSAC) is a joint effort between CDC, FDA, and USDA-FSIS. The latest report covers the year 2023 and focuses on the food vehicles of illnesses from Salmonella, E. coli O157, and Listeria monocytogenes.
Nearly all of the ill people interviewed reported consuming Raw Farm-brand raw dairy products. Testing and an onsite inspection of Raw Farm’s operation in California is ongoing. Raw Farm LLC has yet to issue a recall.
