• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Culture
• /
• v.37 no.4
• /
• pp.300-309
• /
• 2022

This study analyzed food poisoning articles in the Joseonwangjosillok to acquire historical evidence. The study method used case studies from the textual content of the Joseonwangjosillok. In all, there were fifteen cases of food poisoning in spring (60%), four cases in summer (16%), five cases in fall (20%), and 1 case during winter (4%). Most cases of food poisoning occurred during spring, followed by fall, then summer, and the least during winter. Foods that caused poisoning were as follows: twelve cases of seafood (48%), three cases of vegetables (12%), two cases of meat (8%), and eight cases of poisonous food (32%). Maximum cases pertained to seafood poisoning, which also spiked during spring. This could be attributed to the increased number of planktons as the sea temperature rose during spring. Due to the increased plankton, shellfish absorbed more toxins. The consumption of increasingly toxic shellfish resulted in more cases of food poisoning. The food poisoning frequency was the most severe during the 18th century, followed sequentially by the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries, and was the least severe during the 19th century. Joseonwangjosillok showed that food poisoning cases happened most during social events where many guests or family members gathered to eat.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
• /
• v.46 no.3
• /
• pp.353-358
• /
• 2020

Objectives: An outbreak of pathogenic Escherichia coli food poisoning in Korea was first reported in 1998. They have continued to occure since then. This study was performed to describe the long-term trend in pathogenic E. coli food poisoning occurrences in Korea and examine the relation with climate factors. Methods: Official Korean statistics on food poisoning outbreaks and meteorological data for the period 2002-2017 were used. Pearson's correlation analysis was employed to establish the relationship between outbreaks of pathogenic E. coli food poisoning and meteorological factors. The influence of meteorological factors upon the outbreaks was analyzed by regression analysis. Results: During the study period, pathogenic E. coli food poisoning ranked second for the number of outbreaks (excluding unknowns) and first for the number of cases. Average temperature, the highest and lowest temperatures, precipitation, number of days with rainfall, and humidity all had a significant correlation with monthly number of outbreaks of pathogenic E. coli food poisoning (p<0.001). It was found that the lowest and highest temperatures and precipitation had a significant influence on the monthly number of outbreaks of food poisoning (p<0.001). These variables together explained 42.1% of the total variance, with the lowest temperature having the greatest explanatory power. Conclusion: These results show that food poisoning incidences may have been influenced by climate change, especially warming. The results also suggest that pathogenic E. coli infections are now an important public health issue in Korea since it is one of the countries where climate change is occurring rapidly.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
• /
• v.12 no.3
• /
• pp.240-253
• /
• 1997

The main problems contributing to food poisoning outbreaks in institutional settings and a home were reviewed and analyzed through the epidemiological investigations of food poisoning. The major documented factors included improper holding temperatures, inadequate cooking, poor personal hygiene, cross-contamination and contaminated equipment, food from unsafe sources, failure to follow food hygiene policies, and lack of education, training, monitoring and superivision. Usually more than one factor contributed to the development of an outbreak. (1) Use of improper holding temperatures was the single most important factor contributing to food poisoning. They included improper cooling, allowing a laps of time (12 hours or more) between preparing food and eating it, improper hot holding, and inadequate or improper thawing. Food thermometers were not used in most of the instances. (2) In inadequate cooking, the core temperature of food during and after cooking had not been measured, and routine monitoring was limited to recording the temperature of plated meals. Compared with conventional methods of cooking, microwave ovens did not protect against food poisoning as effectively. Centralized food preparation potentially increased the risk of food poisoning outbreaks. (3) Poor personal hygiene both at the individual level (improper handwashing and lack of proper hygienic practices) and at the institutional level (poor general sanitization) increased the risk of transmission. Person to person transmission of enteric pathogens through direct contact and via fomites has been noted in several instances. (4) Obtaining food from unsafe sources was a risk factor in outbreaks of food poisoning. Food risks were high when food was grown or harvested from contaminated areas. Possibilities included contamination in the field, in transport, at the retail site, or at the time it was prepared for serving. (5) Cross-contamination and inadequate cleaning/handling of equipment became potential vehicles of food poisoning. Failure to separate cooked food from raw food was also a risk factor. (6) Failure to follow food hygiene policies also provided opportunities for outbreaks of food poisoning. It included improper hygienic practices during food preparation, neglect of personnel policies (involvement of symptomatic workers in food preparation), poor results on routine inspections, and disregarding the results and recommendations of an inspection. (7) Lack of formal and in-service education, training, monitoring, and supervision of food handlers or supervisors were critical and perhaps neglected elements in occurrences of food poisoning.

• Journal of Industrial Convergence
• /
• v.17 no.3
• /
• pp.9-16
• /
• 2019

In this study, we wanted to analyze the causes of food poisoning and its major occurrence in September 2018 and analyze the relevance of the HACCP certification system to report the correlation. Based on three-year food poisoning cases and causative substances data, and big data on HACCP certification companies and food poisoning frequency, Hygiene 1: 'Salmonella would have spread through school food processing medium.' Hypothesis 2: The difference in the number of food poisoning cases in the last three years as the number of HACCP certifier increases, the number of food poisoning cases will be verified and the cause of food poisoning in September 2018. Studies show that the food poisoning in September 2018 was caused by salmonella bacteria and that outsourced food provided through school meals was the cause. It was also shown that the expansion of HACCP certification did not significantly contribute to the reduction of food poisoning. Therefore, the management operation measures were proposed as a solution to prevent salmonella and to become HACCP certification that could reduce food poisoning.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
• /
• v.2 no.4
• /
• pp.215-237
• /
• 1987

This study was conducted to prepare some information about food poisoning outbreaks in Korea. In this study, all reported data were reviewed, but the data during recent ten years (1977-1986) were mainly analyzed because of data shortage. We used three year moving averages in order to investigate the trend to food poisoning outbreaks, by year, foodborne pathogens, specific foods, and place food contaminated or mishandled.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
• /
• v.46 no.2
• /
• pp.184-191
• /
• 2020

Objectives: This study was performed to analyze cases of food poisoning outbreaks reported in Chungcheongnamdo Province in 2019 and report it as effective data for preventing food poisoning in the future. Methods: Food poisoning outbreaks were analyzed to detect virus, bacteria, and protozoa according to the Manual for Detection of Foodborne Pathogens in Outbreaks to clarify the causes of food poisoning that occurred in Chungcheongnam-do Province in 2019. Results: Among the 79 cases of food poisoning outbreaks, 59 cases (74.7%) were in general restaurants, 15 cases (19.0%) in food service institutions, three cases at banquets, and two cases in take-out food. The 42 cases at general seafood restaurants made up the majority of food poisoning in Chungcheongnam-do. Food poisoning pathogens were shown in 13 cases (86.7%) out of the 15 cases at food service institutions, and 10 cases were related to Norovirus. Among the 79 cases, food-borne pathogens were identified in 35 cases of outbreaks, accounting for 44.3%. The confirmed pathogens were as follows: bacteria (24 cases), Norovirus (12 cases) and Kudoa septempunctata. (five cases). The food-borne bacteria were pathogenic E. coli (12 cases), Staphylococcus aureus (six cases), Salmonella spp. (two cases), Campylobacter jejuni, Bacillus cereus, Clostridium perfringens, and Vibrio parahaemolyticus (one case). Conclusions: To prevent food poisoning, it is necessary to analyze regional characteristics and environments and to hold a campaign for the prevention of food poisoning based on that analysis. In addition, when food poisoning occurs, the results of analyzing its cause and spread based on accurate epidemiological survey need to be shared.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
• /
• v.45 no.6
• /
• pp.622-629
• /
• 2019

Objectives: The occurrence of norovirus food poisoning in South Korea has been reported since 2003. This study was performed to investigate the characteristics of norovirus food poisoning outbreaks in Korea from 2006 to 2015 and to analyze the relationship between these outbreaks and climate factors. Methods: Data on norovirus food poisoning outbreaks were obtained from the Korea Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. Data on climate factors were obtained from the Korea Meteorological Administration. Frequency analysis and Pearson's correlation analysis were adopted for this study. Results: During the study period, norovirus was the greatest contributing factor of food poisoning outbreaks. Approximately half of the outbreaks of norovirus food poisoning occurred in winter. Average temperature, highest and lowest temperatures, precipitation, number of days with rainfall, and humidity all had a significant negative correlation with monthly number of outbreaks of norovirus food poisoning (p<0.05). Among these, the lowest and average temperature showed higher correlation coefficients. However, the sum of the outbreaks in spring and autumn was similar to that of winter, and more than one-third occurred in group meal-service settings, including school lunches. This was strongly assumed as the use of norovirus-contaminated groundwater for preparation of meals in some settings. Conclusion: The cold and dry of the winter season in Korea may assist the transmission of norovirus. Also, the use of groundwater in group meal service is suspected of inducing a larger scale of norovirus food poisoning. Both health authorities and community-based prevention and control measures are required to respond to these complex etiological outbreaks.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
• /
• v.5 no.4
• /
• pp.205-212
• /
• 1990

Data used for this analysis were 281 outbreaks of food poisoning, excluding single cases, reported during 1981-1989. Patient size of 10 persons or less occupied 38.0% of the out breaks. The most frequently isolated bacterial pathogen was Vibrio, 35.4% ; followed by Salmonella, 27.2% ; Staphylococcus , 17.7% ; Escherichia coli , 17.7%. Plant toxin occupied 64% of poisonous substances. Sixty-six percent of food poisoning reported in urban area resulted from meals consumed in food consumed at home. Raw and under-cooked seafoods were the major cousative foods in food service establishments. Pork which frequently serviced at home ceremonies wes the major causative food in rural area. Mushroom poisoning generally occurred during regular meals at home.

• Food Science and Biotechnology
• /
• v.18 no.3
• /
• pp.594-603
• /
• 2009

The genus Bacillus includes a variety of diverse bacterial species, which are widespread throughout the environment due to their ubiquitous nature. A well-known member of the genus, Bacillus cereus, is a food poisoning bacterium causing both emetic and diarrhoeal disease. Other Bacillus species, particularly B. subtilis, B. licheniformis, B. pumilus, and B. thuringiensis, have also recently been recognized as causative agents of food poisoning. However, reviews and research pertaining to bacilli have focused on B. cereus. Here, we review the literature regarding the potentially toxigenic Bacillus species and the toxins produced that are associated with food poisoning.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
• /
• v.61 no.1
• /
• pp.15-23
• /
• 2023

Concerns about foodborne illnesses caused by Kudoa septempunctata are steadily growing, but reports of K. septempunctata in clinical and food specimens related to food poisoning in Korea are limited. This study aimed to genetically identify K. septempunctata in patients with acute diarrhea and in clinical and food samples related to food poisoning caused by sashimi consumption. Both real-time and nested polymerase chain reaction assays were performed to detect K. septempunctata 18S and 28S rDNA genes in the stools of 348 patients with acute diarrhea, 11 samples (6 stool and 5 rectal swab samples) from patients with food poisoning, and 2 raw Paralichthys olivaceus samples collected from a restaurant where a food poisoning incident occurred. K. septempunctata was identified in 5 clinical specimens (4 stools and 1 rectal swab) and 1 P. olivaceus sashimi sample. All detected K. septempunctata were of genotype ST3. This is the first study to identify K. septempunctata in both patients and food samples with epidemiological relevance in Korea, providing evidence that it is a pathogen that causes food poisoning. Also, this is the first study to confirm the presence of K. septempunctata genes in rectal swabs. Despite continuing suspected occurrences of Kudoa foodborne outbreaks, the rate of identification of K. septempunctata is very low. One reason for this is the limitation in obtaining stool and vomit samples for the diagnosis of Kudoa infection. We strongly suggest the inclusion of rectal swabs among the diagnostic specimens for Kudoa food poisoning.