Test Finds No Deadly E. Coli O104 On Kohlrabi Imported Into Thailand

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Test finds no deadly E. coli O104 in imported Kohlrabi

BANGKOK, June 13 - Lab test results found no bacteria of the deadly E. coli O104 strain in Kohlrabi imported from Belgium, said Dr Pipat Yingseri, secretary-general of Thailand's Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The FDA stepped up measures to check fresh fruit and vegetables from Germany, such as blueberries and raspberries. Samples of soft skinned fruit will be collected for tests and products will be distributed after lab test results are confirmed they are free from the bacteria.

Dr Pipat said the chances of an E.coli outbreak in Thailand is quite limited as the country imports only a small amount of fresh fruit and vegetables from northern Europe.

Non-toxic E. coli contamination in fresh fruit and vegetables is common and the human body has an immunization against it. This bacteria can be destroyed by cleaning with water and by cooking. However, the toxic E. coli may be caused by mutation, he added.

As Thailand has implemented measures to prevent an E. coli outbreak similar to that which occurred in Germany last week, laboratory tests showed the strain of E. coli found to contaminate imported avocados from Europe was not the fatality-inducing strain and it will not cause digestive system diseases to those who consume it.

Agence-France-Presse (AFP) reported the death toll from a killer bug outbreak centred in Germany rose to 35 Sunday.

Some 3,255 people have also fallen sick in 14 European countries, according to the World Health Organisation.

Many are seriously ill with bloody diarrhoea and other potentially life-threatening conditions such as haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS), a serious kidney ailment. (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2011-06-13

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E COLI

E coli in imported German turnips 'harmless'

By The Nation

The strain of E-coli found last week on kohlrabi - or German turnip - imported from Europe, was harmless, and not the deadly O104 strain as previously feared, officials said yesterday.

Chief of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Dr Pipat Yingseri said that lab tests confirmed the 13 tonnes of kohlrabi imported by Siam Food Service from Belgium had a "normal" strain, which could be easily killed by cooking at temperatures over 70 degrees Celsius.

Another lot of kohlrabi imported by Tesco Lotus has been lab tested along with other vegetables and fruit imported from Europe, he said. The results should be out in another week.

Affirming that the FDA continued to watch out for the deadly O104 strain, Pipat said the latest measure was to impound for tests first thin-skinned fruits such as raspberry and blueberry, mostly from Germany. Thick-skinned fruits that people peel before eating would only face random test sampling.

He urged people not to worry about eating sprouts, which the German authorities had thought to be the cause of the deadly outbreak, saying the information was inconclusive.

He also advised travellers returning from Europe not to bring fruit or vegetables back to Thailand. People who buy fruit or vegetables as a souvenir while in Europe should clean them thoroughly before eating as a safety precaution, he said.

Director of the Bureau of General Communicable Disease, Dr Opas Kankawinpong, said the Germans couldn't fully confirm that sprouts were the source of the disease. But they were careful about publicising the issue while also having strict measures to destroy sprouts and ban their sale outside the country - so Thailand need not worry.

-- The Nation 2011-06-14