Probe of E. coli in Nestle Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
State and federal health investigators have obtained growing evidence of a possible E. coli O157:H7 outbreak associated with chocolate chip cookie dough, but no recalls of any brand, including Nestle Toll House, have been announced at this time.
But late today, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment warned consumers not to eat Nestle Toll House Cookie Dough because of possible E. coli contamination. Colorado officials said 66 cases of E. coli O157:H7 in 28 states have been matched through molecular subtyping. The cases have been associated with Toll House Cookie Dough through epidemiological study, not direct evidence.
National food safety law firm Pritzker Olsen Attorney is accepting clients in this outbreak from all states, including Colorado and Minnesota. The Minnesota Department of Health is believed to be part of the multi-state investigation and more information will be forthcoming. In Colorado, there have been five confirmed illnesses, including two people hospitalized and one with severe complications.
E. coli 0157:H7 is a potentially deadly bacterium that can lead to severe complications, including Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome (HUS), which often involves renal failure. Symptoms of E. coli O157:H7 infection include diarrhea (often bloody), severe stomach cramps and nausea.
Pritzker Olsen is a premier food safety law firm involved in practically every major outbreak of foodborne illness. The firm has collected tens of millions of dollars for victims of food safety. Currently the firm’s clients include the families of three women who died from Salmonella infection from contaminated peanut butter products.
If you believe you or a loved one has contracted E. coli O157:H7 from eating Nestle Toll House Cookie Dough, E. coli lawyers at the firm are ready to assist you. There is no charge for consulting with our firm. If we agree to represent you, we are paid a percentage of money we collect for you. If there is no recovery, you owe us nothing. Please contact us toll-free at 1-888-377-8900 or complete one of our online forms for a free consultation.
Michigan E. coli: Evidence Pointing to Aunt Mid’s Iceberg Lettuce
Michigan health officials have associated a Michigan E. coli O157:H7 outbreak that has sickened at least 35 people with iceberg lettuce distributed by Aunt Mid’s Produce Company because several of the people who were diagnosed with E. coli infections ate Aunt Mid’s lettuce before becoming ill. According to the Illinois Department of Public Health, six people in Illinois were also diagnosed with E. coli infections after consuming Aunt Mid’s iceberg lettuce.
Additional, compelling epidemiological and microbiological evidence points to Aunt Mid’s lettuce as the source of the E. coli outbreak. According to James McCurtis, a spokesperson for the Michigan Department of Community Health, Aunt Mid’s lettuce is the only kind delivered to the Lenawee County Jail (5 inmates sickened) and the two restaurants in Illinois where the outbreak-strain of E. coli O157:H7 bacteria was found.
Our law firm has a national reputation in this area, and we handle E. coli cases throughout the United States. We are currently handling a number of E. coli cases, including cases involving hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). To contact the firm, please call 1-888-377-8900 (toll-free), email our lawyers or submit our online consultation form on this page for a free consultation.
Professor Daniel Fung on Lettuce and E. coli Contamination
As the country faces yet another recall of lettuce due to possible E. coli O157:H7 contamination, it is apparent that federal and state health officials and the lettuce industry have not taken adequate measures to prevent contamination.
Professor Daniel Fung, a food microbiology professor at Kansas State University, has spent 30 years studying and teaching students about E. coli and other foodborne pathogens. In an interview with Channel 49 (Topeka, Kansas), Professor Fung states, “When this strain [E. coli O157:H7] occurs, it is very serious, because many people can get very sick and children can die.”
The interview of Professor Fung continues:
Professor Fung said no matter if the latest E.Coli outbreak reaches Kansans, consumers should be concerned.
”Every death is too many,” he said.
It isn’t his job to find out what caused this latest recall of Dole’s packaged lettuce. However, he teaches his students where the FDA should start looking.
“Make sure that the manure didn’t go into the field at the same time,” he said. “If you can control the water supply better, then you will have a better chance of controlling the micro-organisms.”
To watch the interview of Professor Fung, please click here.
If Professor Fung is correct—and we think he is—the E. coli-contamination problem is resolvable:
- Lettuce and other leafy greens should not be grown near cattle ranches (this is being done) or in areas where there is frequent flooding (this is also being done).
- Irrigation water should be frequently tested for E. coli O157:H7.
- Farmers not complying with the above should be fined and/or face criminal charges.
Pritzker | Ruohonen is a leading E. coli litigation law firm. To contact an E. coli lawyer at the firm, please call toll-free at 1-888-377-8900 or submit the firm’s online consultation form.
Tracing a Food Implicated in an E. coli Outbreak
The Step-by-Step Process for Tracing a Food Implicated in an E. coli Outbreak:
- A person experiencing the symptoms of E. coli (watery and/or bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramps, nausea, fever, vomiting, and/or body aches) goes to the doctor. The doctor makes an initial diagnosis, and stool cultures from the patient are sent to a clinical laboratory.
- Medical lab tests are done on the stool culture. If the presence of E. coli is determined by the local clinical lab, an isolate of that bacterial culture is sent to the state health department lab for further testing, including PFGE (pulse-field gel electrophoresis). The state health department lab sends the PFGE results electronically to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The DNA “fingerprint” (PFGE result) of the E. coli isolate is compared at CDC with other “fingerprint” samples. If is a match, CDC notifies – via an automated e-mail – the state health departments, along with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).- When there are several isolates with the same PFGE pattern, state health departments investigate to identify a common exposure, such as a common food that was eaten. Local health department representatives, generally epidemiologists, use standard questionnaires to interview both sick and well persons. First, they want to find out where the sickened people ate, such as at home, a picnic, or a restaurant. Then they look for a common food that was eaten.
- If health officials find a sample of suspected food, testing is done to determine if the food is contaminated with E. coli and, if so, the PFGE pattern of the E. coli. If the PFGE matches those of the outbreak victims, that food is considered the source of the outbreak.
- If it is determined that the foodborne illness was due to a food item that was served at a public eating establishment, such as a restaurant, health officials interview the food workers. They use questionnaires to find out what and how foods were prepared. If there was a sick food worker on the job when sickened people ate at the restaurant, etc., health officials will get stool cultures from the food worker. If his or her PFGE matches those of the sickened people, health officials consider the worker to be the source of the contamination.
- If food found at a restaurant tests positive for E. coli and the PFGE matches the outbreak pattern, that food is considered the source of the outbreak. Even if health officials do not find food that tests positive for E. coli, a restaurant can be found liable for any illness associated with eating its food.
- Once the traceback investigation has determined the source of the outbreak, steps are taken to prevent further exposure or spread of the infection. For example, if the source is a specific food being distributed, a recall of that food will be implemented. If the source is an infected food worker, that person will be removed from any food-service duties until they have recovered and tested negative for that bacteria.
If a common food is identified , federal health officials use trace-back techniques to determine where the food came from. If the food is produce, the goal is to find the field where it came from. If the food is meat, the goal is to find the animal it came from. The trace-back stage of the investigation is the responsibility of the FDA (produce) or USDA (meat).
What is PulseNet?
In recent years, uncovering and tracking foodborne outbreaks involving bacterial pathogens has become vastly easier with PulseNet. The following is from the CDC PulseNet site:
PulseNet is a national network of public health and food regulatory agency laboratories coordinated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The network consists of: state health departments, local health departments, and federal agencies (CDC, USDA/FSIS, FDA).PulseNet participants perform standardized molecular subtyping (or “fingerprinting”) of foodborne disease-causing bacteria by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). PFGE can be used to distinguish strains of organisms such as Escherichia coli O157:H7, Salmonella, Shigella, Listeria, or Campylobacter at the DNA level. DNA “fingerprints,” or patterns, are submitted electronically to a dynamic database at the CDC. These databases are available on-demand to participants—this allows for rapid comparison of the patterns.
Pulsed Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE) is a methodology that digests bacterial DNA into fragments which can be run on gels, which produces unique patterns. Like human fingerprints, each bacteria and its offspring have a unique PFGE pattern. If two bacteria are found with an indistinguishable pattern, it is likely that they have a common source and may be part of an outbreak.
A national computer database of PFGE patterns is housed at CDC. States submit PFGE patterns of pathogens that have made people sick to the database over the Internet. The computer then automatically scans previously submitted patterns searching for matches, i.e., indistinguishable DNA fingerprint patterns of pathogens that have made other people sick. If a match is found, a signal is given to the submitter that duplicate patterns are present and where they came from, so that an investigation can begin to look for a common source.
PulseNet is an invaluable resource that identifies outbreaks that would have most likely gone unnoticed. In the 2006 E. coli outbreak linked to bagged, fresh spinach, state epidemiologists uncovered the outbreak using PulseNet technology and quickly alerted the CDC. Within a short period of time, the FDA issued a warning regarding fresh, bagged spinach that may have prevented many more illnesses and deaths.
Pulse-Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE)
Pulse-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) is the DNA “fingerprinting” method that scientists use to determine the source of bacterial foodborne outbreaks.
How Does PFGE Work?
The DNA of the bacterial pathogen responsible for a foodborne illness is digested into pieces by reacting the isolated DNA with enzymes that are able to specifically break the DNA molecule into individual pieces. The digested DNA is placed at one end of the gel. A pulsing electric field applied across the gel drives the DNA pieces into the gel over a period of hours. The smallest pieces slip through the pores of the gel more quickly, so the pieces are separated as distinct bands in the gel, based on size. The resulting pattern of 30 to 50 bands, which resembles a bar code is the “fingerprint.”
What are the Food Safety Implications of PFGE?
Like human fingerprints, each bacteria and its offspring have a unique PFGE pattern. If two bacteria are found with an indistinguishable pattern, it is likely that they have a common source and may be part of an outbreak. A national computer database of PFGE patterns is housed at CDC as part of PulseNet. States submit PFGE patterns of pathogens that have made people sick to the database over the Internet. The computer then automatically scans previously submitted patterns searching for matches, i.e., indistinguishable DNA fingerprint patterns of pathogens that have made other people sick. If a match is found, a signal is given to the submitter that duplicate patterns are present and where they came from, so that an investigation can begin to look for a common source.
What are the Legal Implications of PFGE?
For someone who has been diagnosed with E. coli to be considered part of an E. coli outbreak, the DNA fingerprint of the E. coli bacteria that sickened the person has to be indistinguishable from the DNA fingerprint of the E. coli bacteria that sickened at least one more person. If a food item can be found with the same DNA fingerprint, that food item is considered the source of the outbreak. This connecting of DNA fingerprints between people and food is used to establish legal liability. For example, if 2 or more people ate at a restaurant and contracted E. coli infections, and the DNA fingerprints of those 2 people and a food item at the restaurant were indistinguishable, the restaurant would be liable to the sickened people for all damages related to the E. coli infections, including illness that develop as a result of the E. coli infections, including hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS).
Even if a food item is not found at the restaurant with the same DNA fingerprint as the bacteria that sickened outbreak victims, the restaurant can still be held liable to the sickened people. In a recent case, we represented people sickened at a restaurant in a situation where: 1. no food item was found with the same DNA fingerprint and 2. more than one food item could have been the vehicle for transmission of the foodborne pathogen. Even so, we negotiated a settlement with the restaurant, and our clients were fairly compensated.
To contact us, please call toll-free at 1-888-377-8900 or submit our online consultation form. Our law firm, Pritzker | Ruohonen has a national practice representing victims of foodborne illness, including E. coli.
