Originally authored by Karen Pesaresi Penner.Fadi Aramouni, Karen Blakeslee and Karen P. Penner, Clostridium Botulinum and foodborne illness, Kansas State University, January 2006

Aramouni, Fadi M.

Blakeslee, Karen

K-State Research Exchange

1Animal Sciences and IndustryRevised by Fadi Aramouni, Ph.D.Professor, Food Science and Karen Blakeslee, M.S.Extension Associate, Food ScienceOriginally authored by Karen Pesaresi Penner, Ph.D.Professor Emeritus, Food ScienceClostridium Botulinum and Foodborne  IllnessMF-2171 Food Safety Kansas State University Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension ServiceWhat is C. botulinum?Clostridium botulinum is a bacterium that may cause botulism, a severe foodborne illness. Strains of C. botulinum can produce eight distinct toxins, ﬁve of which are capable of caus-ing disease in humans. C. botulinum is an an-aerobic organism and, there-fore, prefers environments like those found in a sealed jar or in a large container of thick food in which the freely available oxygen has been driven off through heating. Foods often associated with botu-lism are improperly processed, usu-ally home canned, low-acid foods. Examples are meats, poultry, green beans, asparagus, peppers, corn, beets, spinach, and mushrooms. Other foods are smoked, vacuum packed ﬁsh; garlic products packed in oil; grilled onions; baked potatoes; turkey loaf; and stew. Conditions for growth and toxin production Garden produce may contain soil-borne C. botulinum spores at the time of harvest. These spores are inactive. Spores can become vegetative and produce deadly toxins under the right conditions. These conditions — high moisture, no oxygen, low acidity (pH over 4.6), and room temperature — may be present in improperly canned green beans, corn, peas, or other low-acid products. Low-acid foods require high tem-perature processing using a pressure canner if they are to be canned and safe to eat. Pressure canning is necessary to achieve a high enough tempera-ture to destroy spores before they can become vegetative. (Refer to K-State Research and Extension publication Preserving Vegetables, MF-1181, for more information on home canning of vegetables). Conditions favorable for botulism may also occur in uncanned foods. Putting garlic in oil creates anaerobic conditions for the garlic, as does wrap-ping grilled onions or baked potatoes in foil. Holding these products at warm kitchen temperatures for long time pe-riods encourages growth of vegetative cells and the production of toxin. The toxin can enter the body through ingestion, inhalation, or ab-sorption through the eye or a cut in the skin. The botulinum toxins are some of the most toxic substances known; only a small amount of the toxin is needed to cause illness and death. Animals can also develop botulism from eating the same contaminated food.Food service establishments that package foods in vacuum packag-ing must comply with Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Kansas Food Code rules. Botulism is a risk in some vacuum packaged foods, such as precooked meat and poultry. These establishments must have a Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point plan that identiﬁes C. botulinum as a microbiological hazard along with steps to control this hazard. Fresh ﬁsh should not be vacuum packaged unless it has been kept frozen before, during and after packaging.How serious is the illness?Botulism symptoms may develop anywhere between eight hours and eight days after ingesting the toxin, most commonly within 12 to 48 hours. Symptoms consist of nausea, vomiting, double vision, fatigue, dizziness, difﬁculty breathing, and headache; dryness of skin, mouth, and throat; and constipation, lack of fever, and paralysis for one to ten days or more. The mortality rate varies between 30 and 65 percent. Early detection and treatment is extremely important to avoid death or severe, long-term ef-fects. Because the nervous system is af-fected, recovery for those who survive can take years.Infant botulism is another type of botulism. It may occur in infants under fourteen months because their intes-tinal tracts are not fully developed. It can occur when infants ingest bacterial spores which colonize and produce toxin in the intestinal tract. This illness is mild in some infants; in others it may be severe. The two most common foods to cause infant botulism are corn syrup and honey. Symptoms are constipation followed by lethargy, poor feeding, weakness, drooling, weak cry, and loss of head control.The history of botulismC. botulinum was ﬁrst discovered in 1896. Botulism comes from the Latin Outdated Publication, for historical use. CAUTION: Recommendations in this publication may be obsolete.2word “botulus,” which means sausage. Early cases of the illness often came from eating improperly cured sausage. Today in the United States, sausage is rarely the cause of botulism because nitrites are added to prevent bacte-rial growth. Plant products rather than animal products are more commonly the source of organisms. Before 1963, most cases of botulism in the United States were traced to home-canned vegetables. Total cases rarely exceed 50 per year, with the highest 10-year period being from 1930 to 1939 when 384 cases were reported from noncommer-cial foods. Between 1899 and 1963, 1,561 cases were reported from non-commercial foods, while 219 were re-ported from commercial foods between 1906 and 1963. In 2003, there were 20 cases of foodborne botulism and 76 cases of infant botulism reported in the United States to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Botulism last occurred in Kansas in July 1995 when an older couple became ill from eating home-canned food. Infant botulism last occured in Kansas in 1996.How can you prevent botulism?The majority of outbreaks have been caused by home-canned foods. Because C. botulinum forms heat-resistant spores, home-canned meat, poultry, ﬁsh, and vegetable products require pressure canning to achieve a high enough temperature (240 to 250 degrees Fahrenheit) for a sufﬁcient time to destroy the spores. It is important to use research-based, up-to-date processing methods. These methods are described in the USDA Guide to Home Canning, 1994, and in various K-State Research and Exten-sion publications. Oven, microwave, and open-kettle canning are deﬁnitely out! If you do not have a pressure canner, borrow one or freeze the food instead. If C. botuli-num bacteria survive and grow inside a sealed jar of food, they can produce a poisonous toxin. Even a taste of food containing this toxin can be fatal. Do not consume food suspected to contain botulism, even if boiled.Caution: To prevent the risk of botulism, low-acid and tomato foods not canned according to the recom-mendations in the USDA Guide to Home Canning or according to other USDA-endorsed recommendations should be boiled as above, even if you detect no sign of spoilage. All low-acid foods canned according to the approved recommendations may be eaten without boiling them when you are sure of all the following:■ Food was processed in a pressure canner.■ Pressure canner gauge was tested and accurate.■ Up-to-date researched process times and pressures were used for the size of the jar, the style of pack, and the kind of food being canned.■ The process time and pressure recommended for sterilizing the food at your altitude was followed.■ The jar lid is ﬁrmly sealed and concave.■ Nothing has leaked from the jar.■ No liquid spurts out when the jar is opened.■ No unnatural or “off ” odors can be detected.Because of the potential hazards of improperly home-canned foods, it is also against State of Kansas regulations to serve these foods in food service establishments. ■ Avoid using vacuum packag-ing machines to enhance storage of leftovers. ■ Store leftover foods and vacuum-packaged meats in the refrigerator or freezer. ■ Do not feed corn syrup and honey to infants or use as a dip for paciﬁers. ReferencesAdams, M.R., and M.O. Moss. Food Micro-biology. The Royal Society of Chemis-try., 1995, pp. 168-177.Applied Foodservice Sanitation, A Cer-tiﬁcation Coursebook, 4th Ed. The Educational Foundation of the National Restaurant Association, 1992, pp. 44-45.Jay, James M. Modern Food Microbiology, An AVI Book. Van Norstrand Reinhold, 4th Ed., 1992, pp. 487-501.Kansas Food Code, Kansas Department of Health and Environment, Bureau of Consumer Health. 1999. Subpart 3-502.12 K.A.R. 28-36-101 through K.A.R. 28-36-108Miller, Roger W. “How Onions and a Baked Potato Became Sources of Botulism Poi-soning.” FDA Consumer, October 1984.Penner, Karen P. Microorganisms and Foods. Kansas State University North Central Regional Extension Publication No. 447, 1992.Summary of Notiﬁable Diseases – United States 2003 www.cdc.gov/mmwr/pre-view/mmwrhtml/mm5254al.htm Ac-cessed 8/28/2005Summary of Notiﬁable Diseases – United States 1996 www.cdc.gov/mmwr/pre-view/mmwrhtml/00050719.htm Ac-cessed 8/28/2005USDA Guide to Home Canning. USDA-ES Agriculture Information Bulletin No. 539, 1994.Brand names appearing in this publication are for product identiﬁcation purposes only. No endorsement is intended, nor is criticism implied of similar products not mentioned. Publications from Kansas State University are available on the World Wide Web at: http://www.oznet.ksu.edu Contents of this publication may be freely reproduced for educational purposes. All other rights reserved. In each case, credit Fadi Aramouni, Karen Blakeslee and Karen P. Penner, Clostridium Botulinum and Foodborne Illness, Kansas State University, January 2006.Kansas State University Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension ServiceMF-2171 January 2006K-State Research and Extension is an equal opportunity provider and employer. Issued in furtherance of Cooperative Extension Work, Acts of May 8 and June 30, 1914, as amended. Kansas State University, County Extension Councils, Extension Districts, and United States Department of Agriculture Cooperating, Fred A. Cholick, Director.Outdated Publication, for historical use. CAUTION: Recommendations in this publication may be obsolete.

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