Food Safety Outbreak: Raspberries
In 1996 and 1997, illness related to Guatemalan raspberries sickened over 1,400 people in North America. The cause of the illness was thought to be cyclosporidia, or infection with the cyclospora microorganism.
Cyclospora were thought to be getting on raspberries in the water used to spray fungicide on the fragile ripe berries before shipping them abroad. When the outbreaks continued, the FDA banned raspberries from Guatemala in 1998.
Canada continued to accept imports from farms considered to be low risk, yet 192 cases related to raspberries were reported in 13 separate incidents in Canada that spring.
The FDA, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Canadian health authorities worked with Guatemalan berry growers to come up with a “Model Plan of Excellence.” By using intensive inspections, traceback capability, and a mandated list of safety practices, they were able to stop the outbreaks.
The safety system was expensive, however, and many growers went out of business—only three growers out of an original 85 remained by 2002.
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Beecher, C. 2010. Berry Lovers Benefit from Food Safety Scrutiny. Food Safety News. July 22.
National and Transboundary Food Safety Emergencies, FAO/WHO Global Forum of Food Safety Regulators,
Marrakech, Morocco, 28 - 30 January 2002
Outbreak of Cyclosporiasis- Ontario, May 1998 Canada Communicable Disease Report, Public Health Agency of Canada.
Food Safety and Trade: Regulations, Risks, and Reconciliation By Jean C. Buzby and Lorraine Mitchell Amber Waves November 2003, accessed 8/14/2010
“Those who got sick from raspberries: 1,800 in 2 cyclospora outbreaks.” By Brent Black, Extension Specialist, Utah State University, Utah Berry Growers Association newsletter, March 2007
