Here are companies and products involved in cases of listeriosis
The cases of listeriosis registered in Italy are increasing. Here's how to avoid infection and which products to watch out for
Clinical cases of infection with listeria, also called listeriosis, are on the rise in Italy. To warn, without indicating a precise number, is the Ministry of Health that is maintaining "high attention" regarding the contamination of food by the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes .
Reason for which the withdrawal of some food products has been arranged. But which companies are involved and how to protect yourself from infection?
WHAT LYSTERIA BACTERIA IS AND HOW IT IS RISK OF INFECTION
As the ministry explains, Listeria monocytogenes , responsible for listeriosis, is an ubiquitous bacterium that can be present in soil, water and vegetation and can contaminate various foods such as milk, vegetables, soft cheeses, undercooked meats, and slightly seasoned sausages. .
People usually get listeriosis after consuming contaminated foods.
WHO RISKS MORE
Healthy children and adults – the note reads – may occasionally be infected, but rarely develop a serious disease unlike debilitated, immunosuppressed individuals and pregnant women where the disease is more severe.
The severity of the symptoms varies considerably according to the infectious dose and the state of health of the affected individual.
THE SYMPTOMS OF THE INFECTION
They range from flu-like or gastrointestinal forms, sometimes accompanied by high fever, up to septicemic forms, meningitis or abortion in subjects at risk.
WHAT LISTERIA LIKE (AND DON'T LIKE)
The Listeria bacterium resists low temperatures and drying very well, in food stored at refrigeration temperature (4 ° C). On the other hand, it is very sensitive to the domestic cooking temperatures of food.
This is why the ministry recommends "paying utmost attention to the correct methods of storage, preparation and consumption of the foods indicated precisely on the label on the package, which normally involve cooking before consumption".
BUT WHAT ARE THE INCRIMINATED PRODUCT …
In this specific case, the offending products are sausages. In fact, the ministry let it be known that the checks to deal with the spread of the bacterium "revealed a correlation between some of the clinical cases and the presence of the Listeria ST 155 strain in würstel based on poultry meat produced by the Tre Valli farm – IT 04 M THERE IS. The presence was also confirmed by sampling carried out at the plant ".
… AND THE COMPANIES INVOLVED
According to Il Fatto Alimentare , which was able to consult the complete alert of the brands, among these there would be Wudy Aia, Töbias di Eurospin, Golo, Wurs, Pavo, Salchichia, AV5 and Salumeo (Lidl).
LOTS WITHDRAWAL
The company, according to the ministry, has started all measures to protect the consumer with the withdrawal of the batches that tested positive (1785417 and 01810919) and, in application of the principle of maximum precaution, of all those produced before 12 September 2022.
It has also implemented a communication that reinforces what has already been indicated on the products directly in the points of sale. Further investigations are currently underway on other matrices and other types of products that could be related to human cases of listeriosis.
WHAT THE EU ALERT SYSTEM SAYS
The case, however, began on 2 August, when the European Commission's Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (Rasff) was notified by Italy of an outbreak of Listeria monocytogenes strain ST 155.
Yesterday's update defines the level of risk as “serious” and counts 66 people affected and 3 dead. Measures taken include product recall in Italy and recall / recall monitoring in Sweden.
THE DISMISSAL
However, the Tre Valli farm in a press release sent to Il Fatto Alimentare , “categorically denied that there is technical-scientific evidence that could lead to correlating the cases of death due to Listeriosis and the sausages produced by Agricola Tre Valli”.
THE COUNCILS OF EFSA AND MINISTRY
To prevent listeriosis, the European Food Safety Authority (Efsa) and the ministry reminded us, it is important that companies follow good manufacturing and hygiene practices , carefully indicating the methods of conservation and consumption of products, that consumers pay pay attention to some precautions.
At home, in fact, it is advisable to keep the temperature of the refrigerator low to limit the potential growth of bacteria such as Listeria in case they are present in ready-to-eat foods but also to wash your hands often, frequently clean all surfaces and materials that come into contact with food (utensils, small appliances, refrigerator, tea towels and sponges).
It is also suggested to store raw, cooked and ready-to-eat foods in the refrigerator separately and in closed containers; to cook food well following the manufacturer's instructions on the label; not to prepare the food to be consumed after cooking too early (if not, keep it in the fridge and reheat it before consumption); and not to leave perishable foods at room temperature and respect the storage temperature indicated on the label.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/sanita/listeriosi-prodotti/ on Tue, 27 Sep 2022 08:40:28 +0000.