Contamination by soft cheeses in Santiago (2008) , a type of soft cheese in which
Listeria was found in late 2008. During the first half of 2008, the number of cases studied by health centers and medical institutions in the
Santiago Metropolitan Region quadrupled compared to previous years, with a particular increase in the disease in pregnant patients. In September 2008, the
SEREMI Metropolitana de Salud took several samples of suspect foods and identified the "strain 009" in a variety of
Brie cheese. As a result, the Public Health Institute (ISP) identified the strains in soft cheeses of the Chevrita brand and on November 25 the SEREMI issued the recall of all brie and
camembert cheeses of that company, as well as products of the brands Las Pircas and Lescure. Finally, up to the end of 2008, 119 cases were registered in the Metropolitan Region (there is no data for the rest of Chile), 77% of which belonged to the
northeastern sector of the capital, with the largest number concentrated in districts characterized by a high socioeconomic level, such as
Las Condes (sixteen cases),
Vitacura (twelve cases),
Lo Barnechea (four cases),
Ñuñoa (three cases),
Providencia (three cases),
La Reina (two cases) and
Peñalolén (one case). during 2008.
National outbreak due to cecinas (2009) Following the identification of the origin of "clone 009" and the subsequent recall of contaminated products, there was a drop in listeriosis cases during the summer of 2009. Following an investigation of several companies, on April 13 the ISP identified
Doñihue Limitada, a company that supplied laminated jerky to
Agrosuper, as the source of the new outbreak of listeriosis, due to contamination of the food conveyor bar. In mid-April, the
Servicio Agrícola y Ganadero (SAG) detected the presence of
Listeria in products from a dairy company in
Frutillar,
Los Lagos Region; however, no cases had been reported in that area until that date. On April 23, the
Ministry of Health issued a report on the status of the outbreak, identifying eighteen cases and three deaths, two in the Metropolitan Region, and one in
Rancagua,
O'Higgins Region, the first listeriosis fatality reported outside Santiago. Two days later, the
Jumbo supermarket chain detected that several of its own products, including
longanizas,
chorizos, meats and
sausages, had the bacterium, and they were immediately withdrawn from sale to the public. Between May 14 and 15, four new victims of the disease were added, two from the Metropolitan Region and two from the Valparaíso Region. However, the Minister of Health Alvaro Erazo stated that this was not a resurgence of the bacterium, since "there is no history that could be repeated or a type of consumption that points to any particular company and to any focus of contagion". On May 19, a new case of listeriosis in Temuco came to public light, in which a pregnant mother, who did not present symptoms, passed the disease to her child before delivery.
Decline The spread of influenza
A (H1N1) in the country, which began in mid-May 2009, surpassed the listeriosis health emergency. However, specialists recommended at the time to continue with food precautions regarding dairy products and beef jerky, since epidemic control was essential to keep the disease stable and avoid a resurgence. In August 2009, a 24-year-old woman died of listeriosis in the
Maule Region, although the authorities said it was an isolated case and had no connection with the outbreak in the first half of that year. == Effects ==