A meat company linked to the listeria outbreak that killed a Leicester hospital patient has been temporarily closed down.
Investigators from the Food Standards Agency have traced the contamination back to North Country Cooked Meats in Salford, which provided the meat for the sandwiches sold to various hospitals by The Good Food Chain.
The outbreak in May led to deaths in Leicester, Manchester, Liverpool and Derby and all five casualties were hospital patients, with no one outside hospitals appearing to have been affected.
The Good Food Chain, which withdrew a large number of ready-to-eat meals, has now been allowed to continue trading but will not be supplying hospitals again until various further checks have been carried out.
But North Country Cooked Meats has been shut while the investigators close in on the precise source of the infection, which is safe in small quantities but fatal in higher doses.
No other North Country Cooked Meats products have been found to be infected but further testing of products and food preparation areas for matching strains of listeria.
A statement today from the Food Standards Agency said: “The Good Food Chain is no longer part of the ongoing investigation into the source of the outbreak.
“With the investigation now focusing on suppliers further up the food supply chain, The Good Food Chain can restart production.
“However, to ensure public health continues to be protected, an enhanced set of food safety measures are now in place and the local authority will continue to carry out strict monitoring and oversight of the company for the next three months, with further supervision to be determined by inspection findings. The business will have to reapply for accreditation before it can directly supply the NHS again.”
Dr Colin Sullivan, chief operating officer at the agency said: “This is a complex investigation, but we have worked to swiftly identify and remove from the food chain the products linked to these hospital cases.
“Our investigations are now focused on where the outbreak strain originated from and subject to strict verification and ongoing monitoring by Stafford Borough Council, The Good Food Chain company is now able to restart production.
“The company will be carefully monitored to ensure public health continues to be protected.
“Our thoughts remain with the families of those who have passed away.”
Leicester South MP Jon Ashworth, who is the shadow health secretary, blamed cost-cutting for leading to cooked meals being replaced with ready-to-eat cold food.
He said: "I have been speaking to hospital catering staff in recent days and they have raised with me concerns about the tight finances, and that years of capital cuts have left kitchens substandard, and this has driven a move to greater outsourcing of catering, with sandwiches and soups steadily replacing hot meals."
