Thought this might interest you food safety watchers. Perhaps some of
you have the expertise to be of assistance to this effort. FWIW.
peace
mish
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A ProMED MAIL POST
Date: Fri, 07 May 1999 16:56:25 -0400
From: Marjorie P. Pollack
FDA to review food poisoning from oysters
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[This doesn't mention the venue of the public meeting on 26 May 1999,
but it does request that scientists and other industry and consumer
groups submit information on the rate and conditions of infections to
FDA by 6 July 1999 (again, no mention of to whom at FDA - MPP]
U.S. regulators asked science and consumer groups Friday to help
determine how often Americans are sickened by bacteria in raw oysters
that are one of the leading causes of worldwide food poisoning. The
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said it would hold a public meeting
on May 26 to assess the public health risk of _Vibrio
parahaemolyticus_ infections ahead of considering any change to U.S.
shellfish regulations. Scientists and other industry and consumer
groups must submit information about the rate and conditions of
infections by July 6, the FDA said.
Found naturally in coastal areas, the bacteria cause diarrhea,
vomiting and other symptoms that sometimes require hospitalization. A
more dangerous form of the microorganism -- _Vibrio vulnificus_ --
sickens a small number of Americans annually and typically kills half
of them. The milder form of the disease strikes frequently in Japan,
and is a leading cause of global foodborne illness, the FDA said. Last
year, more than 500 people in the U.S. Gulf Coast, the Northeast, and
the Pacific Northwest were sickened after eating raw shellfish. In
1997, an outbreak of _Vibrio parahaemolyticus_ in oysters was blamed
for 209 illnesses from California to British Columbia. Data more than
25 years old guided the FDA in setting a maximum level of _Vibrio
parahaemolyticus_ in raw shellfish at 10,000 cells per gram. But
outbreaks in the past two years suggest that an infectious dose may be
as low as 100 cells, the FDA said.
"FDA expects the risk assessment to provide the scientific
underpinnings FDA needs to develop food safety policies that reduce
the risk of disease resulting from ingestion of _V. parahaemolyticus_
in molluscan shellfish, and other seafood consumed raw,'' the agency
said. The FDA also wants to develop rules for closing waters to
shellfish gatherers to prevent the illness, the agency said. Oysters
and shellfish are regulated by the FDA and state governments through a
national shellfish sanitation program.
- --
ProMED-mail
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
Michele Gale-Sinex, communications manager
Center for Integrated Ag Systems
UW-Madison College of Ag and Life Sciences
Voice: (608) 262-8018 FAX: (608) 265-3020
http://www.wisc.edu/cias/
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Take a deep breath. Yeah, I know it doesn't make
you feel better, but it oxygenates your blood and
allows you to swear in longer strings. --Mister 3D
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