Health authorities in Russia are dealing with an outbreak of botulism food poisoning. On Tuesday, more than 120 sick people were counted in the capital Moscow, of which 55 were classified as serious cases. Another 14 cases were counted in Nizhny Novgorod and another 14 in Kazan in the Republic of Tatarstan, as state news agency Tass reported. The infections were all traced to tainted canned beans.
All victims had ordered the beans in the form of salads from a food delivery service in Moscow, the State Investigative Committee said. The boss of this delivery service was arrested, as well as the boss of the company that produced the canned beans. A total of three arrests took place. The researchers discovered that the delivery service also employed illegal migrant workers from Uzbekistan.
Toxin can be fatal
Botulism is caused by the bacterium Clostridium botulinum, which develops in inadequately preserved foods due to a lack of air. In addition to causing vomiting or diarrhea, the toxin paralyzes the nervous system and is therefore potentially fatal. But botulism is a rare disease.
The German Robert Koch Institute recorded between 0 and 24 cases annually between 2000 and 2017, mainly food botulism. Larger outbreaks only occur when all victims have eaten the same spoiled food.
Source: Krone
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