FDA says ice cream factory behind listeria outbreak had no place for workers to wash their hands

Employees at Big Olaf Creamery, a Florida-based creamery, Last year’s multistate listeria outbreak, according to a study conducted by the Food and Drug Administration, there was no place to wash hands before entering the production room.of outbreak At least one person died and 27 were hospitalized in 11 states.

“It was observed that there were no hand washing sinks outside production areas for employees to wash and sanitize their hands before entering the production room,” the FDA wrote.

The FDA investigation uncovered a variety of ice cream maker issues that contributed to the outbreak, including the lack of food safety plans. During the inspection, FDA made 14 visits to the facility to confirm that the manufacturer was not qualified to “perform assigned duties and maintain records documenting food hygiene and food safety training.” discovered.

The organization also found that the facility had been recontaminated with Listeria while the outbreak last July was still ongoing.

“You did not identify and establish controls related to the risk of recontamination with environmental pathogens at your facility,” the FDA wrote. “This lack of control was evidenced by recontamination with environmental pathogens during environmental testing on 14 July 2022.”

Listeria is a bacterial infection caused by eating contaminated food, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Pregnant women, people over the age of 65, and people with compromised immune systems are most at risk, according to the CDC.

Symptoms can resemble those of common food poisoning, such as diarrhea and fever, and most people who experience these symptoms recover without treatment.