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Source: http://www.cidrap.umn.edu/news-persp...an-aug-02-2013
Food Outbreak Scan for Aug 02, 2013
Tomato compensation claim; FDA foodborne pathogen test contract
Filed Under:
Foodborne Disease; Salmonella
Tomato growers file compensation claim over '08 outbreak
Tomato growers in three southeastern states filed a claim in the US Court of Federal Claims this week seeking individual compensation totaling $40 million after the federal government mistakenly warned that certain varieties appeared to be linked to a 2008 Salmonella Saintpaul outbreak, Food Safety News (FSN) reported today.
The investigation eventually found that hot peppers from Mexico were the source of the outbreak, which sickened more than 1,400 people in 43 states, the District of Columbia, and Canada.
FSN said that the federal claims court in which the growers filed their claim has exclusive jurisdiction in takings clause cases, which can come into play when, for example, entities give up land for a federal highway.
The growers said they lost their late-2008 tomato crop due to unjustified public health concerns, and they're asking the government to compensate them for their losses. In their filing the growers suggest the possibility of a class-action lawsuit for all growers of red plum, red Roma, and red round tomatoes in six southeastern states, which would likely cost the government millions more, according to FSN.
Aug 2 FSN story
FDA collaboration supports new foodborne pathogen tests
Life Technologies, Corp., a biotechnology company based in Carlsbad, Calif., recently announced that it has signed a 5-year agreement with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to speed and continue the development of tests for two foodborne contaminants, Escherichia coli and Salmonella.
The collaboration has three parts: design and validation of new tests based on FDA-provided strains, design and validation for a workflow for pathogen detection with the Ion PGM platform, and the evaluation of new technology platforms for pathogen detection.
The company said in a Jul 30 statement that it will use its bioinformatics resources to develop real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assays against unique E coli and Salmonella targets, and provide the FDA with test results for further validation. Also, Life Technologies' Ion PGM Sequencer will be used to generate whole-genome sequencing from defined bacteria and for strains that are excluded from detection.
Sequences generated through the collaboration will be added to the National Institute of Health's Genbank as a resource for the food safety research community, according to the statement.
In addition, the FDA will validate and test Life Techniques next-generation sequencing system for Salmonella in an effort to develop rapid detection tools that can improve the response to future outbreaks.
Jul 30 Life Technologies press release
Food Outbreak Scan for Aug 02, 2013
Tomato compensation claim; FDA foodborne pathogen test contract
Filed Under:
Foodborne Disease; Salmonella
Tomato growers file compensation claim over '08 outbreak
Tomato growers in three southeastern states filed a claim in the US Court of Federal Claims this week seeking individual compensation totaling $40 million after the federal government mistakenly warned that certain varieties appeared to be linked to a 2008 Salmonella Saintpaul outbreak, Food Safety News (FSN) reported today.
The investigation eventually found that hot peppers from Mexico were the source of the outbreak, which sickened more than 1,400 people in 43 states, the District of Columbia, and Canada.
FSN said that the federal claims court in which the growers filed their claim has exclusive jurisdiction in takings clause cases, which can come into play when, for example, entities give up land for a federal highway.
The growers said they lost their late-2008 tomato crop due to unjustified public health concerns, and they're asking the government to compensate them for their losses. In their filing the growers suggest the possibility of a class-action lawsuit for all growers of red plum, red Roma, and red round tomatoes in six southeastern states, which would likely cost the government millions more, according to FSN.
Aug 2 FSN story
FDA collaboration supports new foodborne pathogen tests
Life Technologies, Corp., a biotechnology company based in Carlsbad, Calif., recently announced that it has signed a 5-year agreement with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to speed and continue the development of tests for two foodborne contaminants, Escherichia coli and Salmonella.
The collaboration has three parts: design and validation of new tests based on FDA-provided strains, design and validation for a workflow for pathogen detection with the Ion PGM platform, and the evaluation of new technology platforms for pathogen detection.
The company said in a Jul 30 statement that it will use its bioinformatics resources to develop real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assays against unique E coli and Salmonella targets, and provide the FDA with test results for further validation. Also, Life Technologies' Ion PGM Sequencer will be used to generate whole-genome sequencing from defined bacteria and for strains that are excluded from detection.
Sequences generated through the collaboration will be added to the National Institute of Health's Genbank as a resource for the food safety research community, according to the statement.
In addition, the FDA will validate and test Life Techniques next-generation sequencing system for Salmonella in an effort to develop rapid detection tools that can improve the response to future outbreaks.
Jul 30 Life Technologies press release