Outbreak of Botulism
Associated with Canned Chili, July 2007
Public health officials in Indiana, Texas, and at CDC are investigating an
outbreak of botulism associated with canned hot dog chili sauce manufactured by Castleberry’s Food Company. Foodborne
botulism is a rare but serious paralytic illness caused by consuming foods that
contain botulinum toxin, a nerve toxin that is produced by the bacterium Clostridium
botulinum.
Due to possible contamination with botulinum toxin, CDC, the Food
and Drug Administration (FDA), and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and
Inspection Service (USDA-FSIS) are advising persons not to eat certain canned food products manufactured by Castleberry’s
Food Company. These include certain Castleberry’s brands as well as products
distributed under other brand names. The recall includes some canned dog food. A listing of the recalled products
can be found at the following websites:
http://www.castleberrys.com/news_productrecall.asp
(for all products)
http://www.fda.gov/opacom/7alerts.html
(for FDA-regulated products)
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/Fsis_Recalls/index.asp
(for UDSA-regulated products)
Other foods that should be discarded are
·
those recalled
products with missing or unreadable “best by” dates;
·
foods that may
have been prepared with a recalled product;
·
canned chili
sauce, chili, beef stew, hash, corned beef hash, barbecue pork, barbecue beef,
chip beef, Brunswick stew, sausage gravy or canned dog food of any unknown
brand.
As of July 21,
2007, four cases of botulism have been reported to CDC from Indiana (2 cases)
and Texas (2 cases). Onset dates range from June 29 to July 9, 2007. All four
persons were reported to have consumed Castleberry’s brand Hot Dog Chili Sauce
Original. Botulinum toxin was identified in leftover chili sauce from an
unlabeled sealable bag collected from a patient’s refrigerator.
CDC OutbreakNet (the network of
epidemiologists and other public health officials, facilitated by CDC, who
investigate outbreaks of foodborne, waterborne, and other enteric illnesses
nationwide) staff shared this information with colleagues at the FDA. After
being informed about the outbreak by the FDA, the company that manufactures the Castleberry’s brand
Hot Dog Chili Sauce and other products issued a voluntary recall on July 18, 2007. The recall was
expanded on July 21.
Persons with signs or symptoms of botulism who have eaten
Castleberry’s brand Hot Dog Chili Sauce or any of the other recalled products are
advised to immediately contact their health care provider. These include new onset of double
vision, blurred vision, drooping eyelids, slurred speech, difficulty
swallowing, or muscle weakness. If untreated, the illness may progress from
head to toe, with paralysis of the face, arms, breathing muscles, trunk, and
legs. Symptoms generally begin 18 to 36 hours after eating a contaminated food,
but they can occur as early as 6 hours or as late as 10 days. Health care
providers evaluating persons with signs of botulism should contact their State
health department immediately. CDC provides 24/7 consultation on botulism to
State health departments.
Additional information can be found at: http://www.cdc.gov/botulism/botulism.htm
