A local catering franchise that makes school lunches has pulled ground beef dishes from its menu in response to an Ottawa Public Health investigation into a possible link between a salmonella outbreak in area schools and meals served by the franchise.
Tacos and lasagna will be left off the menu temporarily as a precaution, said Jonathan Morris, owner of an Ottawa franchise of The Lunch Lady. The Toronto-based catering company sells meals for children in schools and daycares.
The kitchen investigated by Ottawa Public Health officials, one of two run by Morris’ franchise, has also been shut down, he said.
“We’re taking the worst-case assumption,” Morris said. “Everything we do is about serving kids nutritious, safe food. This is devastating for us.”
Ottawa Public Health has found 20 laboratory-confirmed cases of salmonella in the city since March 2, when the outbreak began, said Dr. Rosamund Lewis, Ottawa Public Health’s medical director.
Of those cases, 16 involve children between the ages of 15 months and 14 years old who may have eaten meals from the catering franchise, she said.
“We cannot yet be certain that the source we’re looking at is the source,” Lewis said. “There are still other possibilities.”
The outbreak has not affected any schools in Centretown, but Ottawa Catholic School Board spokeswoman Mardi deKemp said the board will follow Ottawa Public Health’s direction when informing parents of the outbreak.
Ottawa Public Health representatives have been interviewing the patients’ families and have found that many of the children ate meals from the franchise, she said. The other four patients are adults who may have contracted the illness elsewhere.
Morris said the kitchen under investigation has always passed inspections, including one conducted Monday as part of Ottawa Public Health’s investigation.
“We’ve had a very clean record for the five years we’ve been in operation in Ottawa,” Morris said. “Everything’s been good. The kids like the food, our service has been excellent. This is the first time anything has cropped up.”
Salmonella is a bacteria found in birds, animals and reptiles, according to Health Canada. Humans can become infected with the bacteria by eating foods that are uncooked or improperly cooked, not washing fruits and vegetables, or not washing their hands after handling raw meat or using the bathroom.
Symptoms of the illness, which appear six to 72 hours after infection, include vomiting, diarrhea, nausea, fever, chills, abdominal cramps, and sudden headaches. The illness usually passes after four to seven days, but children can sometimes suffer from more serious infections as a result of the illness.
Cases have been reported at Turnbull Private School on Fisher Avenue, École Jean-Paul II in Stittsville, and Steve Maclean Public School and Tiny Hopper Day Care in Kanata.
Students from both of Ottawa’s English school boards are on their March Break holidays this week, but Ottawa Public Health will be sending information to schools March 15 about the situation, including a reminder about preventing the spread of salmonella through washing hands and toys, Lewis said.
Morris said he sent an email Tuesday night to parents who order food for their children through his franchise about the situation. Parents whose children attend schools served by the temporarily-closed kitchen won’t be able to order food when students return to class next week.