Bakery

  • 2 dead, 75 sick from salmonella in zeppoles

    Posted: May 2nd, 2011 - 8:48am by Doug Powell

    The Boston Globe recaps the salmonella outbreak that killed two and sickened 75 others linked to DeFusco’s Bakery in Rhode Island in March.

    State inspectors found a host of health violations at the bakery, from gallons of pastry cream left unrefrigerated for hours to pastry shells stored in egg crates tainted with salmonella bacteria. It was most likely the shells, which had come into contact with the salmonella-infected eggs, that ignited the outbreak, disease detectives said. The state issued an immediate recall of the bakery’s goods, and the shop agreed to close its two locations immediately.

    “These were gross health violations, literally and figuratively,’’ said Annemarie Beardsworth, spokeswoman for the Rhode Island Department of Health.

    In mid-April, the state ordered the bakery to remain closed until the violations are fixed. The bakery’s phone number has been temporarily disconnected, and the bakery’s lawyer could not be reached for comment.

    The outbreak was discovered March 25 when a nursing home in Warwick reported that 15 residents and two staff members had fallen ill. Investigators discovered that all had eaten zeppole from DeFusco’s to commemorate St. Joseph’s Day, and the store owners closed the bakery the same day.

    Over the next week, the state received dozens of similar reports of salmonella symptoms, and all but one person had eaten zeppole from DeFusco’s, which supplied the pastries to other bakeries and catered events for the holiday. DeFusco’s also had a retail store in Cranston, but health officials said the contaminated pastries all came from the Johnston store.

    Unannounced state inspections before the outbreak, including one in December, did not find serious violations, Beardsworth said. But the most recent review, conducted March 25, found nine. The hand sink in the bathroom did not have running water, and employees reported washing their hands in a three-bay sink without soap or paper towels. The staff failed to sanitize equipment and utensils after washing them, and left calzones filled with deli meats and cheeses unrefrigerated.

    Even worse, Beardsworth said, pastry cream filling used for the zeppole and eclairs was tested at a temperature of 125 degrees. “That’s a breeding ground for bacteria,’’ she said.

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    Salmonella  |  0 Comments
    Bakery, defsco, food safety, salmonella, zeppole
  • Earning a baking badge

    Posted: April 3rd, 2011 - 8:37pm by Sol Erdozain

    Author: 
    Sol Erdozain

    Browsing through the channels the other night, I came across one of the many food porn shows on TV, DC Cupcakes. Being the food safety observer I’ve become, I thought I’d watch for food safety faux pas. I wasn’t disappointed.

    The owners were hosting the Girl Scouts of America, who needed to earn their baking badges. This was especially significant because the bakers had failed to earn their baking badges back in the day.

    The cupcake experts started with egg and butter tips. One of them told the girls that the cupcake batter would be better if the eggs and butter were at room temperature prior to mixing them. As she said this, she handed an egg to each of the girls, one of which dropped it on the counter.

    After they all cracked their eggs in a bowl, including the cracked one, they proceeded to feel how soft the butter was. No handwashing featured after touching the eggs or before contaminating the butter (and everything else they came in contact with for that matter).

    As demonstrated by a recent salmonella outbreak in a Rhode Island bakery, which may have been the outcome of contaminated eggs, it’s important to follow simple safety practices such as handwashing. Especially in the food production business.

    Maybe that’s why the DC ladies didn’t earn their baking badge when they were Brownies.
     

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    Handwashing, Salmonella  |  0 Comments
    Bakery, cupcakes, Eggs
  • Nuevo Folleto Informativo: Más de 100 enfermos a causa de 4 brotes relacionados con pasteles en Illinois

    Posted: January 14th, 2011 - 8:55am by Doug Powell

    Traducido por Gonzalo Erdozain

    Resumen del folleto informativo mas reciente:

    - Las pruebas revelaron Staphylococcus aureus en productos de “Rolf's Patisserie”
    - Productos de pastelería rellenos con crema, ya sean tortas o eclairs de chocolate, por lo general se ven involucrados en brotes 
de Staphylococcus aureus
    - Brotes en panaderías y pastelerías son a causa de pobre higiene personal, equipo contaminado y abuso de temperatura.

    Los folletos informativos son creados semanalmente y puestos en restaurantes, tiendas y granjas, y son usados para entrenar y educar a través del mundo. Si usted quiere proponer un tema o mandar fotos para los folletos, contacte a Ben Chapman a benjamin_chapman@ncsu.edu.

    Puede seguir las historias de los folletos informativos y barfblog en twitter
    @benjaminchapman y @barfblog.
     

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    Other Microorganisms  |  0 Comments
    Bakery, food safety, Illinois, Spanish, staphlococcus
  • Près de 100 personnes malades dans quatre foyers dus à des pâtisseries vendues dans l’Illinois

    Posted: January 11th, 2011 - 5:20pm by Doug Powell

    Translated by Albert Amgar

    Les produits de pâtisseries tels que les gâteaux à la crème comme les tartes à la crème et les éclairs au chocolat sont souvent impliqués dans des intoxications alimentaires à Staphylococcus aureus.

    Une analyse a révélé la présence de Staphylococcus aureus dans des produits de la pâtisserie Rolf

    Une pâtisserie de Lincolnwood dans l’Illinois a été à l’origine de quatre foyers d’intoxications alimentaires à staphylocoque en novembre et décembre 2010. Ces foyers liés au travail du traiteur, ont rendu au moins 100 personnes malades. La pâtisserie Rolf, l'entreprise en cause, a fermé ses portes et a rappelé un certain nombre de produits vendus au détail pour limiter de nouvelles maladies.

    Les cas ont été liés à la consommation de pâtisseries dans un restaurant ou autre. Des prélèvements d'aliments analysés par les autorités sanitaires locales ont confirmé la présence de Staphylococcus aureus. La pâtisserie a réouvert après avoir écarté tous les ingrédients alimentaires, un nettoyage et désinfection intensif de l'installation, et, une nouvelle formation des personnels aux bonnes pratiques d'hygiène.

    Staphylococcus aureus peut se développer dans des aliments riches en protéines, à faible teneur acide (comme les pâtisseries fourrées à la crème) et conservés à température ambiante. Lorsque les bactéries croissent, elles créent des toxines entraînant diarrhée, nausée, vomissements et crampes abdominales lorsqu'elles sont consommées. L’apparition des symptômes peut être très rapide, près d’une heure après consommation des aliments contaminés.

    Staphylococcus aureus est souvent retrouvé sur la peau humaine. Les épidémies dans les pâtisseries sont souvent liées à une mauvaise hygiène personnelle, des équipements contaminés et des températures insuffisantes.

    QUE POUVEZ-VOUS FAIRE ?
    • AYEZ UNE BONNE HYGIENE PERSONNELLE
    • NETTOYER ET DÉSINFECTER UN EQUIPEMENT APRÈS SON UTILISATION POUR LIMITER LA CONTAMINATION DES ALIMENTS
    • CONSERVER AU FROID LES PÂTISSERIES À LA CRÊME LORS DU STOCKAGE ET DU TRANSPORT
    POUR PLUS D’INFORMATION, CONTACTEZ BEN CHAPMAN, BENJAMIN_CHAPMAN@NCSU.EDU OU DOUG POWELL, DPOWELL@KSU.EDU
     

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    Other Microorganisms  |  0 Comments
    Bakery, food safety, French, Illinois, Staph
  • Sydney bakery closed after salmonella sickens 120, 22 hospitalized

    Posted: January 11th, 2011 - 7:22am by Doug Powell

    ABC News reports an outbreak of salmonella linked to a bakery in Sydney's west is being investigated by the State Government's public health unit.

    Almost 120 people have sought help, suffering from gastroenteritis after eating takeaway food from a bakery at Bankstown.

    Twenty-two of those have been admitted to hospital for treatment.

    The bakery has now been closed until further noticed.

    Why not name the bakery so previous inspections can be checked on the government’s name-and-shame website?
     

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    Salmonella  |  0 Comments
    Bakery, food safety, Illness, salmonella, sydney, Takeaway
  • Bakery source of 9 U.K. E. coli O157 illnesses; 6 more suspected

    Posted: November 17th, 2009 - 8:29am by Doug Powell

    By bakery, the Brits mean deli-style, with cold-cuts, meat pies, and more of the traditional sources of E coli O157 other than bread.

    Nine adults who bought food from a bakery in Gateshead have been confirmed as having the O157 strain of the infection, with a further six people currently undergoing tests.

    The Health Protection Agency (HPA) said two people were receiving hospital treatment, with the remainder recovering at home.
     

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    E. coli  |  1 Comment
    Bakery, Delis, O157, Uk
  • 11 sick with E. coli O157 linked to meats from UK bakery

    Posted: November 12th, 2009 - 7:08pm by Doug Powell

    Health officials on Tyneside are investigating seven confirmed and four possible cases of E.coli O157 infection in adults from the Gateshead area.

    The Health Protection Agency (HPA) said     six of those infected bought cooked meats or sandwiches from Myers bakery in Felling.

    The owners have agreed to close the bakery pending further investigations.
     

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    E. coli  |  0 Comments
    Bakery, Mike Myers, Uk
  • Australian judge: 'If you cannot offer food that is safe for consumption, you ought not to '

    Posted: June 25th, 2009 - 3:55pm by Doug Powell

    A North Melbourne bakery riddled with cockroaches and mouse droppings that failed to comply with an order to clean the shop has been fined $7,000.

    After an inspection in April last year that found a live mouse, cockroaches, moths, mouse droppings and dirty shelving and work benches, Queensberry Hot Bread's owner Dino Primitivo did not comply with an order to clean the shop or deter pests, the Melbourne Magistrates Court heard yesterday.

    Photographs tendered to the court showed a live mouse under shelves, clothing hung up to dry in front of an oven, cracked, broken and dirty work tools, benches and surfaces, and mouse droppings on the floor.

    Magistrate Sue Wakeling told Primitivo,

    "If you cannot offer food that is safe for consumption, you ought not to."
     

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    Restaurant Inspection  |  1 Comment
    Bakery, Melbourne, Rodents
  • Should bake sales be regulated?

    Posted: October 8th, 2007 - 6:23am by Doug Powell

    Some students groups are upset after the University of Nebraska at Omaha banned the sale of homemade baked goods on campus.

    UNO officials said the ban was put in place due to concerns about food allergies and contaminated food, although there had been no reports of contamination.

    While such bans, along with similar attempts to inspect church pot-lucks and other community-based initiatives may seem heavy-handed, the potential for sick people and subsequent liability cannot be ignored.

    Anyone who serves, prepares or handles food, in a restaurant, nursing home, day care center, supermarket, local market or yes, even  for a bake sale, needs some basic food safety training. And health inspectors are there to provide some minimal oversight.
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    Food Safety Policy  |  1 Comment
    Bakery, Regulated, Sale
  • It's OK, he's wearing oven mitts

    Posted: September 12th, 2007 - 5:16pm by Doug Powell

    The Edmonton Sun reports Adam Duerr got salmonella from his girlfriend.

    An inspector with Capital Health visited Duerr while working at his food service gig at The Italian Bakery in April and told them Duerr could not return to work until getting two negative tests for the bacteria.

    He went back to work anyway.

    When confronted by a health inspector,  Renato Frattin, an owner-manager of the bakery, told the inspector the worker wore oven mitts while removing loaves of bread from the oven and placing them on cooling racks.

    Frattin and Duerr were both fined $1,150 in court yesterday after pleading to the same charge.

    Yes, people will abuse the system, but sick employees should stay at home.
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    Salmonella  |  0 Comments
    Bakery, Power Of Employees, Sick