New Zealand’s rate of gastroenteritis caused by eating unsafe food is unacceptably high with the most recent New Zealand Food Safety Authority (NZFSA) study putting the economic cost through lost work days alone at $86 million. Around 40% of the problem is estimated to be due to poor food handling in the home.

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) have published their Community Summary Report on Food-borne Outbreaks in the EU in 2007. It shows that Salmonella remained the most common cause of food-borne outbreaks in the European Union, followed by food-borne viruses and Campylobacter.

Arizona Hydroponic Farming LLC. of Eloy, Arizona, is voluntarily recalling its “4oz Alfalfa Sprout Cup” as a preventive measure because of a positive test result in California for  Salmonella. The potential for contamination was noted after routine testing by the USDA revealed the presence of Salmonella in some 4 ounce packages collected from a customer in California.

The Wisconsin-based processor of bagged spinach that tested positive for salmonella has been given the green light to resume packing.