The Marler Clark Network
Posted by Drew Falkenstein on September 29, 2009

Florida Woman Petitions Whole Foods to Continue Selling Raw Milk

 A Florida woman who runs an organization called Miami Real Food has petitioned Whole Foods, one of the nation's largest organic grocers, to continue selling raw milk.  See the entire petition here.  The petition states, in part, 

[R]aw milk from grass-fed cows is infinitely healthier than those that are kept in confinement dairies. Times have changed and modern stainless steel tanks, milking machines, refrigerated trucks and inspection methods make pasteurization absolutely unnecessary for public protection.

Our firm's thoughts on the sale and consumption of raw milk have been stated loudly and clearly for years.  If you haven't read the first two parts of Bill Marler's recent four part series on the safety of pasteurized milk versus raw (unpasteurized) milk, please do so.  See Part I, and Part II.  The reality , and the reason why so many states have made the sale of raw milk illegal, is that there really is no way to produce the product safely.  

Think about where milk comes from, and the proximity of that anatomical area to where E. coli O157:H7 and other pathogens in a cows digestive tract comes from.  And aside from this admittedly simplistic analysis, occasionally some of these harmful bacteria cause mastitis (infection and inflammation of the udder), and may be shed directly into the milk.  Moreover, milk is not always drawn from a cow or other animal in a sterile environment--particularly in the case of raw milk, which is often produced and sold by small-scale, oftentimes unlicensed farmers, who simply do not have the resources to ensure that their product is being produced in a sterile, safe environment.  

My point is not that small, local farms should be targeted or branded as unsafe, or unconcerned with the production of safe food products.  I'm sure that the truth is exactly the opposite, for the most part.  But that does not alter the truth about raw milk, and it doesn't make the product any safer if the farmer who produced it simply lacked the resources to ensure a safe and sanitary milking environment.  

Thus, returning to the Florida woman's petition to Whole Foods to continue selling raw milk, she shouldn't be begrudged for having a devotion to more natural foods.  But her petition is indisputably misleading.  "Times have changed," true enough, but not so much that the production methods employed by many raw milk producers "make pasteurization absolutely unnecessary for public protection."  

Posted by David Babcock on September 29, 2009

Bacteria in Leafy Greens - Following the Light?

New research conducted in Israel suggests that the method that some bacteria, including Sallmonella, are enetering leafy greens is connected to light exposure, as reported today on an L.A. Times blog. 

The new study was published in the journal "Applied and Environmental Microbiology."  The findings, as reported by the L.A. Times:

Salmonella penetrates the lettuce leaf's deeper surfaces by entering little pores called stomata. These are the pores plants use to obtain and release gases during photosynthesis--the vital process by which light energy is captured and turned into sugars. There are rather nasty pictures in the article of rod-like salmonella clustered all around these stomata, seemingly going down into them and thus into the inner parts of the leaf.

The infromation could prove useful in limiting bacteria's access to leafy greens.  Such a step might help stem the tide of foodborne illness outbreaks tied to spinach, lettuce and other greens, involving pathogens like E. coli O157:H7, Salmonella, and Hepatitis A.

Posted by Colin Caywood on September 29, 2009

Criminal Charges May Be Filed Against Raw Milk Sellers in Wisconsin

It is a crime to sell raw milk in the state of Wisconsin, and one farmer may be going jail for doing just that.  According to an article in Walworth County Today,  the Walworth County District Attorney's Office is evaluating whether to file charges against the owners of an Elkhorn farm shut down after more than two dozen people fell ill with Campylobacter infections after consuming the farm's raw milk.

Assistant District Attorney Zeke Wiedenfeld on Monday met with three representatives from the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection.

"It's a crime to sell raw milk," Wiedenfeld said after the meeting. "Whether or not it gets charged is a determination that we have to make. I'll be speaking to them (officials) about making a charging decision and what is the proper outcome for a case like this."  Wiedenfeld said it will be a matter of weeks before he makes a charging decision.

As has become a common workaround for similar laws banning the sale of raw milk in other states, some of the buyers claim they did not buy raw milk because they actually have an ownership in the cow under a cow-share scheme.  They claim the arrangement should make it legal for them to have raw milk because Wisconsin law allow farmers and their families to consume their own raw milk as long as they don't sell it.

But Wiedenfeld says that theory is a no go. According to him, selling raw milk is illegal in Wisconsin, even under a cow-share program.

DATCP spokeswoman Donna Gilson said some consumers are misinformed about the law and think they have found a loophole that would allow them to obtain raw milk. But to get raw milk from a farm, Wisconsin statutes require individuals to be bona fide owners with a "real financial stake on the farm," she said.

For just a sampling of the dangers associated with consuming raw milk, check out this study published in Foodborne Pathogens and Disease: Food Safety Hazards Associated with Consumption of Raw Milk.

Posted by Bill Marler on September 29, 2009

Kroger and Nebraska Beef E. coli O157:H7 Case Settled

Bruce Cadwallader of the Columbus Dispatch wrote the following story:

A former New Albany resident who sued the Kroger Co. for selling tainted beef has settled her lawsuit.
Attorneys for Amanda J. Adam, 27, notified Franklin County Common Pleas Court officials on Sept.15 that she had reached a settlement with Kroger and Nebraska Beef of Omaha, Neb. A trial had been scheduled for Sept. 22.  Adam, formerly of Pharlap Drive, had one of 39 confirmed cases of E. coli infection in Ohio and Michigan during the summer of 2008. She was the first person to file suit in Ohio, saying she became ill from hamburger purchased at a Dublin Kroger store that June.

The outbreak caused the voluntary recall of more than 34 million pounds of beef.  Adam has not discussed the case publicly and now is prohibited from doing so.

"The amount of the settlement is confidential, which is typical in cases like this involving insurers and private companies," William Marler, Adam's Seattle-based attorney, said last week.

Three other lawsuits linked to the 2008 outbreak also have been settled, court records show.  A fifth is pending in U.S. District Court in Columbus.

Posted by David Babcock on September 28, 2009

Missouri Gov. Nixon (double) Speaks On E. coli, Lake of the Ozarks

I guess it's hardly news when a politician doesn't give straight answers, but this is double-speak, or non-speak, at its best.   Check some excerpts from this Kansas City Star interview with Gov. Nixon on the Missouri Department of Natural Resources' (DNR) delay in releasing E. coli warnings for the Lake of the Ozarks to the public:

Can you guarantee the people of Missouri that there will be no more disclosures about your office knowing earlier than you previously admitted about the DNR report?

NIXON: We’ve seen challenges with the water at the Lake of the Ozarks over this year. In May and June, a number of reports required the DNR to close the beaches. That's a challenge for everybody.

We’re in the process of moving through and inspecting all 408 of the permanent facilities around there. We’re going to work very, very hard to make sure that water is cleaned up.”

What did you know and when did you know it?

The bottom line is obviously I think that there could've probably been more precise communication.

But the bottom line is it wasn't a secret that there were challenges down there. That’s why those beaches were closed in May and in June, and the slowness of that report, once it came to decision-making situation we said get it out.

Check the link for the rest of the interview.  You have to read it to believe it.

Posted by David Babcock on September 28, 2009

Story of Listeria Survivors Highlights Food Safety Issues

A well written piece in the Washington Post today by Jennifer LaRue Huget details the story of two twins, Luke and Chloe Bennett, who survived a listeria infection at birth.  Listeria is the common name for the pathogenic or disease-causing bacterium known as Listeria monocytogenes. It is a foodborne illness that when ingested causes an infection known as listeriosis.  Approximately 2,500 illnesses and 500 deaths are attributed to listeriosis in the United States annually.

The story details the Bennett children's harrowing illness:

Bennett's [the twins' mother] premature labor and subsequent illness were caused, a quick-thinking nurse recognized, by listeria, food-borne bacteria that most commonly taint deli meats and soft cheeses.

The contamination caused Bennett's body to go into sepsis; her son, hit harder than his sister, suffered seizures, for which he needed medication for months. The Bennetts waited five days after the babies were born to spread the news, so uncertain were they that both would live.

Listeria infections can be difficult to recognize and to trace-back.   The incubation period is comparatively long, up to 70 days.   Second, while most bacteria grow poorly when temperatures fall below 40°F, Listeria survives at temperatures from below freezing to body temperature, and grows best at the 0°F to 50°F range, which includes the temperature range used for freezing and refrigeration.

Posted by Colin Caywood on September 28, 2009

Here Kitty Kitty, I Need My Morning Coffee

You may be wondering what in the world cats and coffee have in common, and until this morning my answer would probably have been some witty quip (or a lame one, depending on your sense of humor).

But it turns out that some cats, the Asian Palm Civet to be precise, can actually enhance the flavor of your morning cup o' joe.  And how do they do that?  I'm glad you asked (but you might not be when I finish explaining it).

As featured in a recent News Press article, a special type of coffee bean called Kopi Luwak is produced by first feeding the bean to civets, which then pass the bean through its digestive tract before being collected and processed for brewing.  To articulate your thoughts, yes, the beans are essentially roasted civet poo.

One US coffee roaster, Bennett's Fresh Roast in Fort Myers, Florida, will begin brewing this expensive, rare and bizarrely harvested coffee this week.

And because readers of Food Poison Journal know to be rightfully weary of any food that comes in contact with feces given the high potential for dangerous pathogens like E. coli, Bennett's owner Bob Grissinger roasts the beans at 600 degrees and then brews coffee to about 200 degrees, temperatures sufficient to kill the pathogen.

So drink up this delicacy is you dare, but just make sure you've got plenty of cash on you.  The cost for 12 ounces of this kitty dung drink runs $20.  As for me, I plan to stick with my plain ol' delicious poo-free Starbucks.

Posted by Drew Falkenstein on September 27, 2009

UK Study: Rise in Clostridium Difficile Illnesses Attributable to . . . Evolution

Clostridium difficile, colloquially known as "C Diff," is an increasing public health risk, particularly in hospital settings, but also as a foodborne pathogen.  Researchers from the United Kingdom, who compared historical strains of C Diff to the strain involved in a large outbreak at Stoke Mandeville Hospital in 2003, say that one of the reasons is that the bug is evolving, and becoming more dangerous. 

Clostridium difficile is a bacterium that causes diarrheal illness in human beings.  Actually, however, it is a bug that is naturally, and quite frequently, present in the gastrointestinal tracts of even healthy humans.  In fact, the bug is present in as many as 3% of adults and 66% of infants.  It typically becomes pathogenic (i.e. capable of causing illness) when the normal intestinal flora in the GI tract is altered, typically as a result of antimocribial treatment in a hospital setting. 

But C Diff is not dangerous because it causes only a couple days of diarrhea. A  2002 study showed that the incidence of patients with C. Diff in hospital settings who suffered life-threatening symptoms increased from 1.6% to 3.2%. Forty-four patients required a colectomy and 20 others died directly from C. difficile colitis.  The UK study concluded that the bacteria has become more virulent because it has acquired genes which enable it to survive better in the environment, spread more easily and make patients more severely ill.

Thus, for more reasons than just that C. Diff is causing more and more illnesses, the recent UK study finding that the bug is evolving is more than a little disturbing.  At the risk of stating the obvious, hospitals are where sick people go . . . people who can least afford to become infected, or succumb to illness from, a bacteria that is becoming more and more virulent. 

Posted by Bill Marler on September 26, 2009

Hot Interviews at Food Safety News - Dr. Nestle and Dr. Raymond

The Washington DC Bureau and Denver Bureau caught up with two more Food Safety Leaders in the last week for some Q & A.  More interviews are coming over the next several weeks as we take the temperature from people who know.

Nestle on Food Safety Politics

Marion Nestle is an authority on food politics and policy. Nestle, a professor of public health and sociology at New York University, has written several books--all must reads for anyone concerned about the food system. From Food Politics: How the Food Industry Influences Nutrition and Health to her most recent book Pet Food Politics: The Chihuahua in the Coal Mine, Nestle informs the discussion on issues ranging from nutrition to labeling to food safety.

Former Under Secretary For Food Safety Speaks Up

President Obama is too prone to making inflammatory remarks about food safety and it is "unnatural" to go this long without a "Senate-confirmed" Under Secretary for Food Safety at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. So says the soft-spoken country doctor who until a year ago held USDA's top food safety job under Secretaries of Agriculture Mike Johanns and Ed Shafer in the Bush Administration.

Posted by Colin Caywood on September 25, 2009

Shocker: A Restaurant Owner Apologizes for Foodborne Illness Outbreak

Although this story comes from across the Atlantic in England, a lesson can still be learned and applied here.

According to the Guardian UK, Heston Blumenthal, the world-renowned chef of the Fat Duck restaurant in Bray, Berskshire, has offered a personal apology  to the more than 500 people who took ill after dining at the restaurant in January and February, 2009. 

Earlier this month the Health Protection Agency reported that an outbreak of the norovirus was to blame and highlighted oysters as the probable cause.

Blumenthal did not comment on the findings of a 45-page report, which also claimed it had found evidence of poor practice at the restaurant.

Today Blumenthal said: "I am relieved to be able to finally offer my fullest apologies to all those who were affected by the outbreak at the Fat Duck. It was extremely frustrating to not be allowed to personally apologise to my guests until now.

"It was devastating to me and my whole team, as it was to many of our guests and I wish to invite them all to return to the Fat Duck at their convenience."

It may seem insignificant to hear an at-fault party say the simple word "sorry," but often that is precisely what clients injured in a foodborne illness outbreak tell me they want--and need--to hear.  Why is it so difficult for defendants faced with clear evidence of causing injury to others to say that simple word?  Elton John and Bernie Taupin were right, "Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word."