76 preschool children poisoned by contaminated yogurt

Nghe An Department of Food Safety and Hygiene determined that the cause of poisoning in 76 children at Thuan Son kindergarten was due to S.aureus bacteria in fermented yogurt.

On May 22, the Nghe An Food Safety and Hygiene Department issued the above conclusion, after 12 days of the poisoning incident. Accordingly, the test results of 10 samples including 6 yogurt and food samples, 4 samples of patient's vomit, conducted by the National Institute for Food Safety Control, showed that the yogurt was contaminated with S.aureus bacteria.

This is Staphylococcus aureus bacteria, which usually cause mild skin infections. If they penetrate deeper into the blood, joints, lungs, or heart, they can lead to serious infections that are life-threatening.

This yogurt was made by the school's nurses and given directly to the children. The Nghe An Food Safety and Hygiene Department requested the District Health Center to advise the Do Luong District People's Committee to handle administrative violations. The Departments of Health andEducation and Training should strengthen food safety in schools with boarding kitchens to avoid similar poisonings.

The refrigerator compartment storing food at Thuan Son Kindergarten kitchen was sealed after the incident. Photo: Hai Binh — The refrigerator compartment storing food at Thuan Son Kindergarten kitchen was sealed after the incident. Photo: *Hai Binh*

On the afternoon of May 9, 267 children (3-5 years old) of Thuan Son kindergarten had a snack of yogurt made by the school's teachers, the rest ate other dishes. By dusk, 76 of the children who ate the yogurt had stomachaches and vomited, and were taken to the commune and district health facilities for emergency treatment. By noon the next day, the children's health was stable and they were discharged from the hospital.

After checking and taking samples at the school, the Nghe An Food Safety and Hygiene Department suspected that the yogurt was the cause of the poisoning because the three-step food inspection and food sample storage were not in accordance with regulations; the homemade yogurt was not processed and preserved at room temperature and was not stored in the refrigerator.

Hai Binh

Source link