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Logan County Health District officials provided food preparation safety advice during their Wednesday afternoon board of health meeting on the heels of a foodborne illness outbreak investigated several weeks ago during a special event hosted at a local school district.
Nursing Director Kelly Reaver and Environmental Health Director Tim Smith said initially they were informed that an illness was reported by individuals who had attended the event. Within about an hour of eating a food dish served at the event, they became sick with intense vomiting, lasting for about six hours.
Upon further investigation, the LCHD employees learned that approximately 11 people were confirmed to have fallen ill with bacillus cereus and they had eaten the dish that contained quinoa and couscous.
No students were affected by the illness, the health district officials said.
Reaver said the nursing staff worked closely with the environmental health staff, who are charged with licensing restaurants and ensuring that those establishments follow proper food safety protocol.
While speaking with individuals involved with the dish preparation, Smith said the LCHD learned that improper cooling procedures likely played a role in the bacillus cereus developing in the dish.
“The dish had been reheated and then was placed directly into a refrigerator while it was still very hot and before it was served,” he said.
“Usually, people think that putting it in the fridge is playing it safe when it comes to food prep, but it’s best to give the food a little time cool down more slowly, by venting the dish if possible. We often recommend to our restaurants to put food products in an ice bath as well.
“When making large quantities of food, it’s also helpful to break down the food into smaller servings to cool and then refrigerate.”
Smith and Reaver said fortunately the dish had been first been served to a much larger crowd and in that setting, it had not caused any issues.
Read complete story in Thursday’s Examiner.
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