Aug 28, 2012
FDA finds Salmonella outbreak strain on farm's cantaloupe
Cantaloupe collected from Chamberlain Farms Produce, Inc., based in Owensville, Ind., has tested positive for the Salmonella Typhimurium outbreak strain that has so far sickened 178 people from 21 states, according to update today from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). FDA investigators were at the farm from Aug 14 to Aug 16 collecting samples from surface areas and from cantaloupe. So far joint investigations by state, local, and federal authorities point to cantaloupe from Chamberlain Farms as a source of the outbreak. According to earlier reports, officials were exploring other possible sources and whether other types of melon were involved. Earlier in the investigation, tests by Kentucky's state public health lab found the outbreak strain in samples from two cantaloupes collected from a retail location. The CDC said consumers who recently bought Chamberlain Farms cantaloupe should not eat them and dispose of any remaining product. Today's update indicates that the number of outbreak illnesses, deaths, and affected states has not increased since the CDC's last notice on Aug 23.
Aug 28 CDC outbreak update
CDC adds 1 case, 3 deaths to 2011 Listeria cantaloupe outbreak
The CDC yesterday updated the total number of people affected by last year's Listeria outbreak linked to Colorado cantaloupes, adding one case and three deaths. The new numbers bring the case total to 147 and the number of fatalities to 33. The agency had posted a final outbreak update on Dec 8, but since then scientists isolated a fifth outbreak-associated subtype of Listeria from a cantaloupe collected during the investigation, and that subtype matched the strain isolated from one patient. The CDC confirmed three deaths to be outbreak related since Dec 8—the most recent death occurring on Feb 29—and also reported that 10 other outbreak patients died, but not from listeriosis.
Aug 27 CDC update
