Possible Tainted Food Products Continue To Be Sold In USA

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Main Category: Nutrition / Diet
Also Included In: Infectious Diseases / Bacteria / Viruses;  Public Health
Article Date: 28 Jul 2007 - 12:00 PDT

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Despite repeated alerts of potential contamination of Castleberry's Food's canned chili, stew and various other food products, some shops throughout the USA are still selling them and people continue to buy. Investigators are working round the clock trying to get as many of these products off the shelves as they can.

The recall involves two years' worth of production from Castleberry's Food's Augusta, Georgia plant, meaning tens of millions of cans.

FDA and state officials are still coming across recalled products for sale at gas stations, small grocery stores and general convenience stores all over the country. Out of 3,700 checks so far the FDA has discovered recalled products still for sale in 250 stores. State officials in North Carolina, where over 5,000 cans have been pulled, say that one in every three stores they check is still selling the said products.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention fears the number of people reportedly made ill from consuming these products may go far beyond the current four.

According to the FDA, Castleberry's Food did not heat the products adequately, which allowed Clostridium botulinum bacteria to survive during the canning process. If the bacterium survives the canning process it will find itself in an ideal environment to thrive - no oxygen and plenty of moisture. The bacterium produces a toxin that causes botulism. The production of this toxin continues apace the longer the bacteria are in the can (the danger grows with time). The bacteria also produce gases which cause cans to break open.

What is botulism?

Botulism is a serious paralytic illness. It is caused by a nerve toxin produced by Clostridium botulinum (a *bacterium). There are three major types of botulism. Foodborne Botulism, Wound Botulism and Infant Botulism. All forms of botulism can be deadly - they are all considered medical emergencies. Because of food distribution methods nowadays foodborne botulism is especially dangerous as it can affect many people quickly over a huge geographical area.

The symptoms of botulism

-- Double vision
-- Blurred vision
-- Drooping eyelids
-- Slurred speech
-- Difficulty swallowing
-- Dry mouth
-- Muscle weakness
-- Infants may seem unduly lethargic, feed poorly, have a feeble cry and poor muscle tone

All these symptoms occur as a result of muscle paralysis. An untreated patient could go on to experience paralysis of the arms, legs, trunk and respiratory muscles.

Symptoms usually start appearing within 18-36 hours of consuming contaminated food (foodbourne botulism). However, they can emerge within just six hours and have been known to take as long as ten days to become apparent.

* (Bacteria is plural. Bacterium is singular.)

-- CDC web site on Botulism
-- Chili Products (Botulism) Recall, FDA web site

Written by: Christian Nordqvist
Copyright: Medical News Today
Not to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

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