The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is looking into “possible linkages” between 45 cases of E. coli-related illness this summer from B.C. to New Brunswick — and that involves “actively investigating” a closed meat plant in Alberta.
CFIA and the Public Health Agency of Canada, in an information bulletin issued late Friday, said they will examine 45 cases of E. coli O157:H7 in B.C., Saskatchewan, Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick reported between July and September, from which 11 people were hospitalized and “one elderly individual” died.
Tests found the majority of the cases shared “a unique pattern” of E. coli, and found the cause of the illnesses mostly associated with ground beef, CFIA said. The new pattern had also been found in the United States, the agency noted.
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Genetic testing of beef samples taken from a “meat facility in Alberta” turned up the same unique E. coli pattern, CFIA said.
The facility is “currently not operating,” CFIA added, noting the company in question has contacted its main distributors to return any affected product and the rest of its product is “under detention.”
CFIA said in its release that it’s “actively investigating this and other potential sources to determine if there is a link between this facility and the cases under investigation.”
CFIA said it’s working to make sure there is no “contaminated” beef from the Alberta facility available to consumers, and will issue a public recall if that product is found to still be on the market.
CFIA did not name the company.
Meanwhile, officials with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) said in a separate release Friday that DNA fingerprinting on tests of beef trim from Ranchers Beef of Balzac, Alta., point to ” a likely source” in O157:H7 cases in several states this summer, tied to New Jersey ground beef maker Topps Meat Co.
Ranchers Beef, which shut its doors Aug. 15, provided beef trim to Topps, FSIS said.
Hit with a massive recall of its ground beef patties in September, Topps announced Oct. 5 that it “cannot overcome the economic reality of a recall this large,” closed its 67-year-old business and now faces related lawsuits.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control on Friday reported it had 40 illnesses under investigation in eight states, with 21 known hospitalizations, FSIS said.
In its release Friday, FSIS said that CFIA, as part of a joint Canada/U.S. investigation, provided it with the DNA fingerprinting from tests on trim from Ranchers Beef. That company has put its Balzac plant near Calgary up for sale, but had some product in storage, from which samples were taken.
FSIS said it has matched the E. coli pattern from Ranchers Beef to recalled Topps product, to patients sickened in the U.S., and to opened beef packages from those patients’ homes. This summer marked the first time that rare E. coli pattern had been seen in North America, FSIS added.
Ranchers Beef was “delisted” on Oct. 20, blocking any of the company’s product from entering the U.S., FSIS reported. The agency also told other U.S. processors to hold any remaining boneless beef trim from the company until the joint CFIA/FSIS investigation is complete.
E. coli O157:H7, often called “hamburger disease” for its links to cases of contamination found in ground beef, is a bacteria found naturally in the intestines of cattle and other animals. Among those who get sick from an infection, symptoms range from abdominal cramping to, in the most severe cases, potentially fatal kidney failure and blood disorders.
If E. coli bacteria get on the surface of meat at slaughter, they can end up inside ground beef during processing, whereas cooking or grilling usually kills the bacteria on the surface of other beef cuts. Public health officials often remind consumers to thoroughly cook ground beef to kill any E. coli bacteria.
Raw fruits and vegetables, if exposed to improperly composted manure, contaminated water or workers using improper hygiene practices, have also been known to carry the bacteria.
