Clostridium botulinum
• Bacteria: Anaerobic, spore-forming, motile GPR
• Source: Soils, sediments, intestinal tracts of
fish/mammals, gills and viscera of crabs and other
shellfish
• Illness: Intoxication (heat-labile neurotoxin)
• Symptoms: Weakness, vertigo, double vision, difficulty
in speaking, swallowing and breathing, respiratory
paralysis
• Foods: Semi-preserved seafood, improperly canned
foods
• Transmission: Spores present in raw foods
• Control: Proper canning, aw <0.93, pH <4.7
Clostridium perfringens
• Bacteria: Anaerobic, spore-forming, nonmotile GPR
• Source: Soil, dust, intestinal tract of animals and
humans
• Illness: Infection (toxin released on sporulation)
• Symptoms: Intense abdominal cramps and diarrhea
• Foods: Temperature abuse of prepared foods such as
meats, meat products, and gravy
• Transmission: Spores present in raw foods
• Control: Proper time/temperature control; preventing
cross-contamination of cooked foods
Bacillus cereus
• Bacteria: Facultatively aerobic, spore-forming, motile
GPR
• Source: Soil, dust, raw foods
• Illness: 1) diarrheal type (infection, heat-labile toxin); 2)
emetic type (intoxication, heat-stable toxin)
• Symptoms: 1) profuse watery diarrhea, abdominal
pain; 2) vomiting, nausea
• Foods: 1) vegetables, salads, meats, casseroles; 2) rice
and pasta
• Transmission: Spores present in raw foods
• Control: time/temperature; reheat cooked foods to
>165o F
Brucella abortis, B. suis
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Bacteria: Aerobic, nonmotile, GNR
Source: Domestic and wild animals
Illness: Infection (undulant fever)
Symptoms: Sweats, chills, weakness, aches, joint
pains
• Foods: Raw milk, infected meat
• Transmission: Infected animals
• Control: Pasteurize milk, cook meats
Campylobacter jejuni
• Bacteria: Microaerophilic, motile GNR
• Source: Intestines of poultry, livestock, domestic animals;
streams and ponds
• Illness: Infection (gastroenteritis)
• Symptoms: Diarrhea, abdominal pain, headache, weakness,
fever
• Foods: undercooked chicken & hamburger, raw milk & clams
• Transmission: Contaminated foods & water; crosscontamination; person to person
• Control: Proper cooking, proper hand and equipment
washing, sanitary food handling practices
Pathogenic Escherichia coli O157:H7
• Bacteria: Facultative anaerobic, motile or nonmotile GNR
• Source: Intestines of animals and poultry
• Illness: Hemorrhagic colitis (HC), hemolytic uremic syndrome
(HUS), thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP)
• Symptoms: HC) diarrhea & vomiting, HUS) diarrhea & acute
renal failure, TTP) diarrhea, GI hemorrhage, blood clots in
brain
• Foods: Meat, poultry, potatoes, raw milk
• Transmission: Cross-contamination, sewage pollution of
coastal waters
• Control: Proper cooking, temperature control, preventing
cross-contamination, proper personal hygiene
Listeria monocytogenes
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Bacteria: Microaerophilic, motile, GPR
Source: Widespread in the environment
Illness: Infection
Symptoms: Mild flu-like symptoms to meningitis, abortions,
septicemia, and death
• Foods: Coleslaw, raw milk, Mexican style soft cheese,
smoked mussels
• Transmission: Cross-contamination from raw to cooked food,
contaminated raw foods
• Control: Proper cooking, preventing cross-contamination,
pasteurizing milk
Salmonella spp.
• Bacteria: Facultative anaerobic, motile, GNR
• Source: Intestine of mammals, birds, amphibians and
reptiles
• Illness: Infection (gastroenteritis)
• Symptoms: Nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps, fever
• Foods: Poultry, poultry salads, meats, dairy products,
egg products
• Transmission: Cross-contamination, human
contamination, sewage pollution of coastal waters
• Control: Proper cooking, temperature control,
preventing cross-contamination, personal hygiene
Shigella spp.
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Bacteria: Facultative anaerobic, nonmotile, GNR
Source: Intestine of humans and primates
Illness: Infection (gastroenteritis)
Symptoms: Mild diarrhea, fever, abdominal cramps, severs
fluid loss
• Foods: Water, milk, salads, lettuce, watermelon, beans,
spaghetti
• Transmission: Contamination from workers, sewage pollution
of coastal waters, contamination of seafood after harvest
• Control: Personal hygiene, preventing human waste
contamination of water supplies, preventing ill people or
carriers from working with food
Pathogenic Staphylococcus aureus
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Bacteria: Facultative aerobic, nonmotile, GPC
Source: Humans and animals, air, dust, sewage
Illness: Intoxication (gastroenteritis)
Symptoms: Nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps,
watery or bloody diarrhea, fever
• Foods: Meats, poultry, eggs, dairy products, seafood
• Transmission: Contamination of food by workers or
equipment
• Control: Time/temperature control, personal hygiene,
sanitation
Vibrio cholerae
• Bacteria: Facultative aerobic, motile, curved GNR
• Source: Naturally occurring in estuaries, bays and brackish
water
• Illness: Infection (cholera or gastroenteritis)
• Symptoms: 01: watery diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal cramps;
non-01: Diarrhea, abdominal cramps, fever
• Foods: Molluscan shellfish
• Transmission: Contaminated water, cross-contamination
from raw to cooked seafood, consumption of contaminated
raw seafood
• Control: Proper cooking, preventing cross-contamination,
Harvesting from approved waters
Vibrio parahaemolyticus
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Bacteria: Facultative aerobic, motile, curved GNR
Source: Naturally occurring in estuaries and other coastal areas
throughout the world
Illness: Infection (gastroenteritis)
Symptoms: Diarrhea, abdominal cramps, nausea, vomiting,
headache
Foods: Raw, improperly cooked, or cooked and contaminated fish
and shellfish
Transmission: Cross-contamination from raw to cooked seafood,
consumption of raw seafood
Control: Proper cooking, preventing cross-contamination of cooked
seafood
Vibrio vulnificus
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Bacteria: Facultative aerobic, motile, curved GNR
Source: Naturally occurring marine bacterium
Illness: Infection (wounds, gastroenteritis, septicemia)
Symptoms: Skin lesions, septic shock, fever, chills,
nausea
• Foods: Raw oysters, clams and crabs
• Transmission: Cross-contamination from raw to cooked
seafood, consumption of raw seafood
• Control: Proper cooking, preventing cross-contamination
of cooked seafood
Yersinia enterocolitica
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Bacteria: Facultative aerobic, motile, GNR
Source: Soil, water, domesticated and wild animals
Illness: Infection (gastroenteritis)
Symptoms: Diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal pain, fever
Foods: Meats, oysters, fish, raw milk
Transmission: Cross-contamination from raw to cooked
food, poor sanitation, time/temperature abuse
• Control: Preventing cross-contamination, proper
sanitation and food handling practices
Viruses
• Hepatitis A and E
• Norwalk virus group
Hepatitis A
• Source: Human intestine
• Illness: Infection
• Symptoms: Fever, malaise, nausea, abdominal
discomfort, jaundice
• Foods: Cold cuts, sandwiches, fruits, fruit juices, milk
and milk products, vegetables, salads, shellfish, iced
drinks
• Transmission: Fecal contamination of food or water
• Control: Proper cooking, preventing crosscontamination, good sanitation, employee hygiene
Norwalk Virus Group
• Source: Human intestines
• Illness: Infection
• Symptoms: Self-limiting and mild; nausea, vomiting,
diarrhea, abdominal cramps, fever
• Foods: Salad ingredients, raw or insufficiently cooked
clams and oysters
• Transmission: Fecal contamination of food or water
• Control: Proper cooking, good sanitation, employee
hygiene, preventing cross-contamination
Anisakis simplex
• Parasite: Nematode (herring worm)
• Source: Raw or undercooked fish (salmon, tuna, herring,
mackerel, squid, anchovies)
• Illness: Infection
• Symptoms: Tickling sensation in throat to acute
abdominal pain and nausea
• Transmission: Consumption of raw or undercooked fish
• Control: Proper cooking of fish, commercial freezing of
fish to be consumed raw
Ascaris lumbricoides
• Parasite: Nematode
• Source: Human intestines, insufficiently treated sewagefertilizer
• Illness: Infection
• Symptoms: Vague digestive tract discomfort, migration
of nematode into throat/mouth/nose
• Transmission: Infected food handlers, sewage fertilized
fruits and vegetables
• Control: Good sanitation, employee hygiene, proper
treatment of sewage used for fertilizer
Pseudoterranova dicepiens
• Parasite: Nematode (codworm)
• Source: Raw or undercooked fish (cod, pollock,
haddock)
• Illness: Infection
• Symptoms: Tickling sensation in throat to acute
abdominal pain and nausea
• Transmission: Consumption of raw or undercooked fish
• Control: Proper cooking of fish, commercial freezing of
fish to be consumed raw
Trichinella spiralis
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Parasite: Nematode
Source: Pork and bear meat
Illness: Infection (Trichinosis)
Symptoms: Fever, muscle soreness, pain and swelling around the
eyes. Chest pain may be experienced since the parasite may
become imbedded in the diaphragm.
Transmission: Raw or improperly cooked infected pork or bear
meat
Control: Thoroughly cook pork and other potentially infected meats,
cook garbage fed to hogs, avoid cross-contamination of beef with
pork
Diphyllobothrium latum
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Parasite: Tapeworm
Source: Raw freshwater or anadromous fish
Illness: Infection
Symptoms: Abdominal distention, flatulence, intermittent
abdominal cramping and diarrhea.
• Transmission: Consumption of raw or undercooked fish
• Control: Proper cooking of fish
Taenia solium, T. saginata
• Parasite: Tapeworm (T. solium, pork tapeworm; T. Saginata,
beef tapeworm)
• Source: Swine or beef
• Illness: Infection; worms attach to lining of small intestine and
can grow large enough to block the intestinal tract
• Symptoms: Nausea, epigastric fullness, and vomiting.
Central nervous system disorders may arise in intermediate
hosts of T. solium
• Transmission: Raw or improperly cooked infected pork or
beef
• Control: Proper cooking of pork and beef
Cryptosporidium parvum
• Parasite: Protozoa
• Source: Cows, goats, sheep, deer, elk
• Illness: Infection (intestinal, tracheal, or pulmonary
cryptosporidiosis)
• Symptoms: Intestinal - severe watery diarrhea or
asymptomatic; pulmonary and tracheal - coughing and lowgrade fever
• Transmission: Contaminated food handler, person-toperson, contaminated water supplies, salad vegetables
fertilized with manure
• Control: Personal hygiene, prohibit fertilizing salad
vegetables with manure, boil or filter contaminated water
Entamoeba histolytica
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Parasite: Protozoa
Source: Intestinal tract of humans and primates
Illness: Infection
Symptoms: 1) none, 2) vague gastrointestinal distress,
or 3) dysentery
• Transmission: Fecal contamination of drinking water
and foods, person-to-person, infected food handlers
• Control: Good sanitation, employee hygiene
Giardia lamblia
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Parasite: Protozoa
Source: Domestic and wild animals
Illness: Infection
Symptoms: Diarrhea (the most common cause of nonbacterial diarrhea in North America)
• Transmission: Contaminated water, infected food
handlers, contaminated vegetables eaten raw
• Control: Water treatment, good sanitation, employee
hygiene, good food handling practices
Types of Naturally Occurring
Chemical Hazards
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Mycotoxins (e.g., aflatoxin)
Scombrotoxin
Ciguatoxin
Shellfish toxins
– Paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP)
– Diarrhetic shellfish poisoning (DSP)
– Neurotoxic shellfish poisoning (NSP)
– Amnesic shellfish poisoning (ASP)/Domoic Acid
• Other marine toxins
– Gempylotoxin
– Tetrodotoxin
Scombrotoxin (Histamine)
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Toxin: Histamine
Source: Improperly handled (time/temperature abuse) mahi mahi,
tuna, bluefish, sardines, amberjack, mackerel
Range: Worldwide
Symptoms: Metallic or peppery taste, nausea, vomiting, abdominal
cramps, diarrhea, swelling and flushing of face, headache, dizziness,
heart palpitations, hives, rapid and weak pulse, thirst, difficulty
swallowing
Control: Proper chilling and temperature control after capture
FDA Guideline: 50 ppm histamine in raw, frozen tuna and mahi
mahi; canned tuna; and related species
Ciguatera Fish Poisoning
• Toxin: Ciguatoxins (4 toxins)
• Source: Certain species of tropical and subtropical fish
feeding on algae (Gambierdiscus spp.)
• Range: Tropical and subtropical waters worldwide
• Symptoms: Diarrhea, abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting,
abnormal or impaired skin sensations, vertigo, lack of muscle
coordination, cold/hot sensation reversal, muscular pain and
itching
• Control: No tests available; obtain fish from safe harvest
areas
• FDA Guideline: None established
Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning
• Toxin: Saxitoxins (18 toxins)
• Source: Contaminated molluscan shellfish feeding on algae
(Alexandrium, Pyrodinium, Gymnodinium spp.)
• Range: Tropical to temperate waters worldwide
• Symptoms: Numbness and burning or tingling sensation of
lips and tongue spreading to face and fingertips, general lack
of muscle coordination in arms, legs, neck
• Control: Obtain molluscan shellfish from waters that have
been approved for harvest
• FDA Guideline: 0.8 ppm saxitoxin equivalent (80ug/100g) in
all fish
Diarrhetic Shellfish Poisoning
• Toxin: Okadaic acid and its derivatives
• Source: Molluscan shellfish feeding on algae (Dinophysis and
Prorocentrum spp.)
• Range: Japan, southeast Asia, Scandinavia, western Europe,
Chile, New Zealand, eastern Canada
• Symptoms: Diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain,
cramps
• Control: Obtain molluscan shellfish from waters that have
been approved for harvest
• FDA Guideline: 0.2 ppm okadaic acid plus 35-methyl okadaic
acid (DXT 1) in all fish
Neurotoxic Shellfish Poisoning
• Toxin: Brevetoxins (3 toxins)
• Source: Molluscan shellfish feeding on algae (Gymnodinium
breve)
• Range: Gulf of Mexico and southern Atlantic coast in U.S.
New Zealand
• Symptoms: Tingling of the face and spreading to other parts
of the body, cold/hot sensation reversal dilation of pupils,
feeling of inebriation
• Control: Obtain molluscan shellfish from waters that have
been approved for harvest
• FDA Guideline: 0.8 ppm brevetoxin-2 equivalent (20 mouse
units/100g) in clams, mussels and oysters
Amnesic Shellfish Poisoning
• Toxin: Domoic acid
• Source: Molluscan shellfish (mussels) feeding on algae
(Pseudonitzschia spp.), viscera of Dungeness crab and
anchovies
• Range: Northeast and northwest coasts of North America
• Symptoms: Intestinal distress, facial grimace or chewing
motion, short-term memory loss, difficulty breathing
• Control: Obtain molluscan shellfish from waters that have
been approved for harvest
• FDA Guideline: 20 ppm domoic acid in all fish; 30 ppm
domoic acid in viscera of Dungeness crab
Gempylotoxin
• Toxin: Oil contained in the flesh and bones of specific
species
• Source: Gemplids, escolars or pelagic mackerels
(escolar; oilfish, castor oil fish or purgative fish; snek)
• Range: Almost worldwide
• Symptoms: Diarrhea, generally without pain or cramping
• Control: Avoid specific fish species
• FDA Guideline: Escolar should not be imported
Tetrodotoxin
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Toxin: Tetrodotoxin
Source: About 80 species of puffer fish, blowfish or fugu
Range: Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans
Symptoms: Numbness and tingling of the mouth, weakness,
paralysis, decreased blood pressure, quickened and
weakened pulse. Death can occur within 30 minutes.
• Control: Do not eat puffer fish or avoid improperly prepared
pufferfish
• FDA Guideline: Puffer fish may not be imported except
under strict certification requirements and specific
authorization from FDA
Tetramine
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Toxin: Tetramine
Source: Salivary gland of whelk (Neptunia spp.)
Range: Primarily the Sea of Japan
Symptoms: Intense headache, dizziness, nausea and
vomiting
• Control: Remove salivary glands before consumption
• FDA Guideline: Remove the salivary glands of
Neptunia spp.