Pistachio -Teraction Tied to viral chocolate bar reflects Salmonella risks of Noten
More brands from Tiktok-famous chocolates with pistachio nuts have been recalled about Salmonella worries. Here why food scientists say that the notes can be main suspects for causing outbreaks of diseases transferred by food.
On Thursday, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency said that more types of Dubai pistachio and Knafeh milk chocolate have have been recalledFollowing earlier recall actions by Habibi brand from pistachio nuts or deserts such as baklava with the nuts. People are not allowed to eat, serve or cook with one of the affected brands.
The Dubai chocolate cover for milk chocolates to a pistachio cream and crispy pieces of Knafeh was fueled by food bloggers. But pistachio nuts and pistachio-containing products are now linked to 52 diseases between the beginning of March and mid -July, including 10 hospital admissions In all of Canada.
“We know that cases in the outbreak have the same genetic fingerprint in the tension of Salmonella that made them sick, and this same tension was found in the Habibi Pistachio Brand, “said Anne Marie Lowe, outbreak manager at the Public Health Agency of Canada in Montreal.
What caused this outbreak is not yet known and can remain a mystery, say food scientists. But because the nuts have a long shelf life, it may not be over quickly.
Pistachio nuts shaken from Boom
Salmonella infection is a food transferred by food bacteria That can cause fever, headache, vomiting, nausea, cramps and diarrhea. It is caused when fecal material comes into our mouths of infected people or animals, such as by consuming contaminated food or drinks.
The bacteria live in the intestines of many animals and common sources are poultry and other meat, not cooked eggs and unpasteurized milk.
For pistachio nuts and foods that contain the nuts, contamination can take place before or during harvest In addition to processing, Lawrence Goodridge said, who has a canada survey in Foodborne pathogens.
Pistachio nuts grow on trees and before the harvest, birds and insects can introduce salmonella in the nuts, he said. Contaminated irrigation water is another possibility.
To harvest pistachio nuts, the trees are usually shaken, even with mechanical equipment. The nuts fall on drawers that can be contaminated in the orchard, Goodridge said.
Salmonella in chocolate is resistant to stomach acid
Although cooking polluted chicken or eggs kills salmonella, some pistachio nuts in products are raw, and even cooking the nuts may not be enough.
“One of the problems with Salmonella is that it survives very well in dry food,” said Goodridge. “It may not grow, but it will survive very long periods and that is why we have seen outbreaks in dry food such as pistachio -nots and almonds, chocolate And flour. “
Microbiologist Keith Warriner, a professor who specializes in food safety at the University of Guelph, said that some Salmonella subtypes, such as the Havana serotype that is involved in this outbreak, can continue to exist in the soil.
“An extra factor is that when recorded in chocolateThe salmonella can survive the stomach acid, so that relatively low doses are needed to cause disease, “Warriner said.
The pistachio nuts were imported into this outbreak. Goodridge said that researchers usually look at who has imported the foods and their data to ensure that the ingredients or foods were produced at the same standards as in Canada.
Boutique or traditional products are not more or less safe in themselves, Goodridge said.
“One thing that took place consistently at outbreaks … is that there is often a breakdown in terms of the food safety programs that should have been followed,” he said, pointing to last year’s plant -based milking croops and Listeriosis outbreak Three people killed that.
Another factor that could extend this Salmonella outbreak is that if pistachosos are dried, the sustainability Can take a maximum of two years, depending on how they are stored, Goodridge said.
Canada has seen several recent recall from food about worries about Salmonella and E. Coli, from carrots to cucumbers to kale. Although that may sound alarming, experts say that the safety system works as it should.
The outbreak investigation goes further, said Lowe, and other affected food products can be identified. The delay between when a person falls ill and goes to the hospital to be tested and the time at which the case is reported to public health is another factor in expanding outbreaks, she said.
Warriner is noticed to prevent Salmonella diseases. Because Salmonella continues to exist under dry conditions and pistachio nuts are dried after harvest, he said, thermal treatments may not work. He is working on a way to pasteurize nuts that do not hold heat.
