1 dead, 16 ill in Canadian Listeriosis Outbreak

TORONTO — An outbreak of listeriosis has killed one person and sickened at least 16 others, Canadian public health officials said Wednesday, as a food company expanded a recall of nearly two dozen types of packaged meats.

The company, Maple Leaf Foods, also suspended production at a Toronto plant.

The Public Health Agency of Canada said it was working with officials in four provinces to establish any link between the outbreak and the affected products recalled by the company.

Listeriosis is a kind of food poisoning that can be dangerous to the elderly, newborns, pregnant women and people with chronic medical conditions. Symptoms include fever, headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea.

Listeriosis was the "underlying cause of death" in the case of the one known fatality, said Dr. David Williams, Ontario's acting chief medical officer of health. He didn't provide further details.

The number of confirmed cases, which seem to consist primarily of nursing home residents, could grow as health units across the province submit reports on the disease, he added.

"The pattern was people in certain long-term care facilities" across southern Ontario, Williams said. "The median age in the males is 76, and in the females is 80."

On Sunday, the company announced it had discovered Listeria bacteria in roast beef and corned beef made at the Toronto facility.

It increased the recall on Wednesday to a total of 23 products, including a variety of turkey, smoked meat and roast beef.

Maple Leaf said that the recall covered all products prepared at the plant since June 2 and that it was temporarily closing the facility to re-evaluate food safety procedures. 

Source: USA Today