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E. coli Outbreak Is One of the Worst in History

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Germany is reeling from what could turn out to be the worst E. coli outbreak in history after more than 1,500 people have fallen ill and 16 killed from a severe strain of the foodborne illness. As a reference, this outbreak is three to five times worse than the 2006 U.S. outbreak of E. coli spread by bagged spinach, which killed three and sickened 276.

Germany initially pointed the finger at Spain and their alleged bacteria-infested cucumbers. But German officials are backtracking — quickly — after it became clear that the sources is still unknown and Spain began threatening legal action over the allegations.

“We do not rule out taking action against authorities which have cast doubt on the quality of our produce, so action may be taken against the authorities, in this case, of Hamburg,” Deputy Prime Minister Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba told radio station Cadena Ser.Spanish farmers say lost sales resulting from the crisis are costing them 200 million euros ($285 million) a week, and could put 70,000 people out of work in a country which already has the highest unemployment rate in the EU. Health Commissioner Dalli said he was looking at what the European Commission could do about the impact on producers.

What has come to the surface during the rapid spread of this deadly illness is the weaknesses of the European Union’s food safety monitoring, “where there is a free market across countries but individual nations are tasked with monitoring safety.” To just about anyone, that seems like a lousy risk management technique that has, in part, led to a fast-spreading, deadly outbreak.

And that outbreak has now spread to eight other European countries, killing one woman in Sweden, which became the first non-German fatality.

Let’s take a look at some of the more recent, and thankfully less deadly, instances of foodborne illness outbreaks:

  • 2010: The largest food recall in history was prompted when dangerous levels of Salmonella were detected in the eggs of two Iowa produces, Wright County Egg and Hillandale Farm. In all, more than 400 million eggs were recalled and approximately 2,000 illnesses were reported.
  • 2009: Peanut butter was blamed for killing nine and sickening 22,500 in one of the worst foodborne illness outbreaks in history. Georgia-based Peanut Corporation of America was found to be the culprit.
  • 2003: Green onions served at a Chi-Chi’s restaurant in Pennsylvania spawned the largest Hepatitis A outbreak in U.S. history. Four people died and more than 660 were infected.

Up Next for Congress: The Food Safety Bill

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Now that the financial reform bill, one of the most important bills in history, has passed through Congress, many lawmakers are now focusing on something just as important: the Food Safety Modernization Act.

The bill, S.510, aims to “amend the federal food, drug and cosmetic act with respect to the safety of the food supply.” In other words, it will expand the power of the FDA, enabling regulators to be more vigilant in preventing food contamination. One key supporter of S.510 is Congressman John Dingell (D-MI), who held a briefing May 19 to call for the swift passage of the bill, citing recent E. coli outbreaks linked to romaine lettuce. Also on board for the passage of the bill is Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), who issued a public statement last week.

“The American people continue to be at risk from dangerous outbreaks while critical food safety reform legislation, which includes provisions that would be helpful in addressing a widespread outbreak through preventive controls and interventions, remains stalled in the Senate, Congresswoman DeLauro said Friday. “I urge the Senate to act quickly before more people become victims of contaminated food and our faulty food safety system–the longer the food safety bill is delayed, the more vulnerable our food safety system remains.

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And delayed it has been. The bill was first introduced in March 2009 and the last reported action regarding the reform was in December 2009 when it was put on the legislative calendar.

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Since then there have been numerous food recalls and food contamination illnesses reported.
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The most recent widespread recall focused on raw alfalfa sprouts produced by Caldwell Fresh Foods of Maywood, California. The sprouts have allegedly sickened at least 22 people in 10 states.

Contaminated food kills at least 5,000 people in the United States every year, puts more than 300,000 in the hospital and costs the nation around $152 billion. To not pass the Food Safety Modernization Act would be like giving the green light careless food manufacturers — in essence, giving them a license to kill.

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Testing for E. Coli Begins . . . At Costco at Least

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Ever wonder where your ground beef comes from? It’s doesn’t originate from one chunk of prime meat sent through a grinder to be packaged up for sale to your family for your next barbecue.  No, instead hamburger meat is most times a combination of various grades of meat from all different parts of cows (including some unappealing parts). When a company such as Cargill, a major food manufacturer, mass produces its popular frozen hamburger patties, they oftentimes receive meats from different slaughterhouses, combining everything to produce the basis for your next cheeseburger or lasagna.

The problem with this (if you haven’t found one yet) is that, as food experts say time and time again, this amalgam of cow parts makes ground beef most susceptible to E. coli. Even so, there remains no federal requirement for grinders to test for the pathogen. As someone who has been infected with E. coli, this is unacceptable. It should not only be unacceptable to me, but to the legions of other meat-eaters out there. Though my experience with the painful illness was horrible, it was nothing compared to what Stephanie Smith went through. 22-year-old Smith was in a coma for nine weeks and is now paralyzed — a severe reaction from E. coli. Hardcore carnivores may not want to read her story, as featured recently in The New York Times.

With no one policing such meat and thousands being sickened each year (there have been 17 outbreaks of E. coli since 2007), how is the public to trust what’s on their dinner plate? You could start by buying your ground beef at Costco. The warehouse discount chain recently reported that they would begin testing for E. coli.

Costco’s food safety director, Craig Wilson, said the company would begin buying beef trimmings for making hamburger from Tyson, one of the largest beef producers, after an agreement reached with Tyson this week that allows Costco to test the trimmings before they are mixed with those from other suppliers.

Though not fully cleared from the pathogen, the Tyson trimmings are to be fully tested before being mixed with other slaughterhouse’s meats. In the past, testing was sometimes done after mixing and grinding the various meats, a process that proved unsuccessful when trying to pinpoint the origin of E. coli. Though this is not a cure, it is a step in the right direction — a step towards risk management for the beef industry.

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