Child dies in blue cheese E coli outbreak in Scotland

A child has died in an E coli outbreak in which 20 people fell ill after eating the same brand of blue cheese believed to have been contaminated with the bacterium.

A multi-agency incident management team (IMT) chaired by Health Protection Scotland has been investigating the outbreak of the same strain of E coli 0157 that resulted in 11 people requiring hospital treatment.

The team found that all those affected had consumed Dunsyre Blue, made by Lanarkshire-based Errington Cheese, before they became unwell.

In July, health officials told consumers who had purchased the cheese with batch codes C22 or D14 between mid May and the end of July to return the product uneaten.

The IMT chair, Dr Alison Smith-Palmer, said: "On behalf of the IMT, I would like to take this opportunity to extend our deepest sympathies to the family of the child who has died. Our thoughts are with them at this time and we ask that their privacy be respected. All confirmed cases became unwell prior to the end of July."

There have been no new cases since then. The team will begin work on its final report, which could take up to six months.

Last month, Errington Cheese complained that it did not know why the IMT had concluded that batches C22 and D14 were responsible for the outbreak, asserting that all its authority, customer and farm testing had been completely clear of E coli 0157.

At least six samples had been taken from the implicated batch D14, all of which had tested negative for E coli 0157, the company said.

Writing on the Errington Cheese website, Selina Cairns, the daughter of the company’s founder, Humphrey Errington, said: "People are worried about eating raw milk cheese and blue cheese and have not been purchasing. Health Protection Scotland is wrecking the reputation of dairy products in the whole country by making them appear unsafe.

Food safety, Child dies,