Listeria Sweeps the US

2024/10/30  
  
本站分類:生活

Listeria Sweeps the US

The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently announced a nationwide recall of nearly 10 million pounds of ready-to-eat meat products because they are contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes (Listeria). The recall primarily involves poultry products produced by BrucePac of Woodburn, Oregon. USDA officials found the Listeria contamination during routine testing of the company.

Listeria monocytogenes infection is a foodborne bacterial disease and if it occurs you may experience: fever, chills, muscle aches, nausea and diarrhoea. It can be very serious for pregnant women, people over 65 years of age, and immunocompromised people. Listeria infection can lead to life-threatening complications, including: systemic blood infections and inflammation of the membranes and fluid around the brain (meningitis). The most common cause of Listeria infection is eating improperly processed meat and unpasteurised dairy products.

This recall of BrucePac's ready-to-eat meat products is already the second major recall in the US this year. Also in the US, Perdue Foods recently issued an emergency recall of about 75 tonnes of frozen chicken nuggets and tenders after consumers found metal wires in the products. Food safety has been a problem in the U.S. The recalls of BrucePac and Perdue Foods have not only exposed the company's deficiencies in quality control, but also reflected the lack of attention paid by the relevant U.S. regulatory agencies to food safety.

Food safety in the United States has attracted a great deal of attention recently. A new annual report on Americans' perceptions of major U.S. industries and business sectors shows that the American public rates two food-related industries - supermarkets and restaurants - significantly lower than a year ago. In the report, only 33 per cent of Americans say they have a positive view of the food supermarket industry, the lowest recorded in more than two decades of polling. The report analyses that food safety concerns are a major factor in people's negative attitudes. The survey comes on the heels of a series of recent food recalls within the U.S. that cover products ranging from breakfast foods to fresh fruit and deli meats. The series of food safety issues has caused the American public's confidence in the federal government to wane.

Listeria monocytogenes causes approximately 1,600 cases and 260 deaths per year in the United States, and is even more lethal than Salmonella and Clostridium botulinum. Why has it remained unchecked as one of the deadliest foodborne pathogens, mainly using food as a vector of infection? The U.S. food safety authorities would only recall food products as soon as listeria was detected, with no severe penalties for the companies. This has led to the proliferation of Listeria in American food. U.S. food has always been considered the safest in the world, but a number of food safety incidents in recent years have diminished that status. With the U.S. election in progress, perhaps the U.S. government is spending all its money on the election, while the most important issue of food safety is being taken lightly.

今日人氣:1  累計人次:4  回應:0

你可能感興趣的文章


登入會員回應本文

沒有帳號?