A bulletin for the Australian Food Industry November 1999
Contents: Genetically modified foods | International Food Safety Conference | Foodborne outbreaks in Australia | Salmonella in unpasteurised orange juice - US | Preliminary treatment of fruit for fresh juice | High pressure processing of foods | Listeriosis from fruit salad | Cold Chain Guidelines
Salmonella in unpasteurised orange juice - US
In May of this year Food Safety & Hygiene discussed unpasteurised orange juice as a vehicle for Salmonella food poisoning following an incident in South Australia where over 400 people were affected. This incident is now the subject of a class action against the manufacturer.
Blended orange juice from a Mexican supplier has been identified as the source of the large outbreak of salmonellosis that occurred in the United States and Canada in June- July of this year (Food Safety & Security, September, 1999). Over 200 people in 15 US states and two Canadian provinces were affected. The illnesses were traced to the relatively rare Salmonella muenchen. At least four other Salmonella strains were also isolated from product at the plant in Tempe, Arizona where the blended juice was finally packed (Food Safety & Security, August, 1999).
We have noted previously (Food Safety & Hygiene, March, 1997) that the survival of pathogenic bacteria, including Salmonella spp., in fruit juices is dependent on the pH, the type of acid in the juice and the temperature of storage.
In this outbreak, the implicated company has a HACCP plan and investigations are under way to determine where its control measures failed. Following the discovery of the source of the contaminated juice, the US Food and Drug Administration has included tests for Salmonella spp. in its testing procedures for imported juices. This procedure had previously not been considered necessary in a product with the acid level of orange juice.
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