Staph Food Poisoning Made 46 Employees Ill At Jessup Seafood Distributor

JESSUP, MD — Health officials have determined that staph food poisoning from an outside dish sickened dozens of employees at the NAFCO Wholesale Fish Distribution Facility in Jessup on Oct. 21.

Forty-six workers were sickened by the outside food prepared by an employee that was taken to work and shared with co-workers at the facility, which is located in the 7700 block of Chesapeake Court. They were taken to several hospitals by ambulance.

The Maryland Health Department conducted tests on clinical specimens taken from the sickened employees and on the food they'd eaten to narrow down the cause, which ultimately was blamed on staph, also known more formerly as Staphylococcus aureus.

“Staph food poisoning is caused by toxins made by the bacteria. Foods that are not cooked after handling, or are cooked and not kept between 40°F and 140°F, can cause illness if contaminated with staph,” the Maryland Department of Health said in a statement.

About 1 in every 4 people and animals carries staph on their skin and in their nose, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Staph usually do not cause illness in healthy people who carry it, but the bacteria have the ability to make toxins that can cause food poisoning.

The CDC stated that staph can contaminate food if people who carry the bacteria touch food without first washing their hands. Staph can multiply in contaminated food and make a toxin that causes food poisoning.

The Baltimore Banner previously reported that two representatives for the distributor NAFCO said the employees started falling ill about three hours after eating pancit, a Filipino noodle dish.

“NAFCO maintains the highest standards of food safety and regularly undergoes rigorous inspections by health authorities,” NAFCO said in a written statement. “Its products continue to be safely produced and consumed by customers nationwide, and there are no issues related to its supply chain.”

The CDC says these are the best steps to prevent staph food poisoning:

• Always wash your hands before preparing or serving food.
• Keep food out of the “danger zone” between 40 F and 140 F.
• Refrigerate perishable food after 2 hours (or 1 hour if in 90 F or hotter temperatures).

Related: Bad Noodles Send 46 Suspected Food Poisoning Victims To Hospitals