Report: Some ice cream contains 'alarming' levels of bacteria

An investigation conducted this past week by the Toronto Star found high levels of bacteria in some sampled soft-serve ice cream sold in Toronto.

Toronto Public Health officials will be launching their own investigation after a stealth in-depth look at food safety by the Toronto Star showed that some soft-serve ice cream, including that sold from mobile trucks, street kiosks and retail stores, contains "alarming" levels of bacteria. The Toronto Star reported it has ordered additional tests to see if the ice creams are also contaminated with pathogens like listeria and salmonella. Earlier tests showed that coliform bacteria was present in soft-serve ice creams from five different vendors in levels that exceed federal limits. Vendors and the Health Unit are wondering what the source of the contamination is. One vendor, which the Star reported had the highest level of coliform in its ice cream, said that his supplier had recently switched their supplier. The Toronto Health Unit released a report earlier this year on food safety that says that most people do not report food-borne illnesses. After the findings made by the Toronto Star, it appears people may have difficulty pinpointing the source of their stomach troubles. While most people look forward to their ice cream, particularly on a hot summer's day, nobody expects their ice cream to be the source of illness. However, a 2001 study in Hong Kong shows that contamination of ice cream products is to be expected to a certain degree. The study found microbiological contamination of ice cream in 3 per cent of the samples taken - out of 16,379 samples collected, 543 were contaminated with bacteria and coliform. Consumers presume products such as ice cream are safe because the milk is pasteurized. Pateurization is a heat treatment which kills pathogens and bacteria. The freezing process required for ice cream inhibits the growth of the bad stuff. The Hong Kong study identified several points in the life line of ice cream in which bacteria and pathogens can become an issue, such as when contaminated ingredients are added, and improper food-handling techniques are used.