Abstract
The authors carried out the epidemiological and bacteriological observation on the food poisoning occurred in the areas covering Gunma, Saitama, Tochigi and Nagano Prefectures, The poisoning was caused by a Japanese food “DAIFUKU MOCHI” in September, 1968.
Epidemiological observations have revealed that the incubation period ranged from 3 to 5 hours, and the disease was characterized by diarrhea, stomachache and vomiting.
From the causative food, it was detected that Staphylococcus aureus of ca. 108 per gram were contained in Part of MOCHI. Staphylococcus aureus was also isolated from the stools of 78 per cent of the patients, from throat swabs of 80 per cent of the persons who prepared the food, and from the belt conveyer for preparation of the food. They were identified as phage type 7 and penicillin resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus by phage typing and drug-resistance examinations.
These facts indicate that the contamination with Staphylococcus aureue was occurred in the course of the manufacturing process of “DAIFUKU MOCHI”,
