Reminder from the Public Health Agency of Canada | Nearly 1,600 people may have been infected with salmonella

(Toronto) The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) says nearly 1,600 people may have been infected with salmonella linked to the recall of mini pastries.

The federal agency’s director of outbreak management said Monday that this calculation is based on the organization’s estimate that for every case reported, there are 26.1 others in the community.

“We estimate that 1,592 people were affected by this event. Those we don’t know about may have had mild or moderate symptoms and resolved them at home without seeking medical care,” said April Hexemer of Guelph, Ont.

PHAC issued an outbreak advisory Saturday stating that 61 cases of salmonellosis were linked to Sweet Cream brand mini pastries that were served in bakeries, hotels, restaurants, cafeterias, hospitals, residences for seniors and during catered events.

The recalled pastries were imported from an Italian manufacturer, which suspended production.

M^me Hexemer said the public health agency launched an investigation Dec. 12 and noticed that an unusual number of infected people had attended catered events that served “fancy desserts.”

“We reviewed records of catered events to identify the specific foods that were served there, and we identified that Sweet Cream brand mini pastries were served at these events,” said Ms.^me Witches.

Investigators tested samples from infected people and found that 16 cases had matching genetic characteristics, providing clear evidence that the sick people were exposed to the same product.

Of the 61 sick people, 33 were in Quebec, 21 in Ontario, four in British Columbia, two in Alberta and one in New Brunswick. M^me Hexemer said the mini pastries had also been distributed to Nova Scotia, but no cases of illness had been reported in the province as of Monday afternoon.

M^me Hexemer said she expects more cases to be reported because there is usually a two- to seven-week delay before an infected person reports their illness.

Joseph Panetta, director of import sales at Piu Che Dolci, a Quebec-based company that distributes the Italian products in Canada and the United States, said they are collecting the recalled products from all their Canadian customers and are would send them to the laboratory to be tested. He said their American customers were not affected.

“We are neither the manufacturer nor the producer. We are simply the importer and distributor. So I apologize on our behalf, but we had no idea and we are doing what we can to correct the situation,” Mr. Panetta said.

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