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Aussie beef could be linked to E coli outbreak

Posted by Rita Mu

A new E coli outbreak in Japan, which has left 15 people ill, is suspected to have come from beef imported from Australia.

According to ABC News Online, 20 people were reported sick in the Toyama prefecture on 6 May, with 15 of them falling sick from O157, a strain of E coli.

The victims were affected after eating at the Korean-style barbeque restaurant chain, Gyukaku, according to ABC News Online. REINS International, the operator of the Gyukaku chain, said it suspected the infections might have been caused by Australian beef imports.

The company reportedly changed its Australian supplier, but a public health inspection found no traces of E coli bacteria in the affected restaurant. 

The incident in Japan follows a recent E coli outbreak in Europe. Last week, Food Magazine reported that more than 300 people in north Germany fell ill after an outbreak of E coli, which was initially suspected to have come from Spanish cucumbers. Health officials have now rejected the cucumber claim and are investigating other potential origins of the outbreak.

The food-borne bacteria, which is a different strain to the one in Japan, has also been detected in other European countries including Britain, Denmark, France and the Netherlands.

According to the World Health Organisation, the E. coli strain in Europe is rare.

ABC News Online reported that a toll compiled by AFP from national health authorities revealed more than 2,000 people across Europe have fallen sick from E coli since the attack in Germany.

More information about E coli is available HERE.

Image: msnbc.msn.com

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