Whey Contaminated With Botulism--, Nobody Gets Sick-- Why ???

Whey Protein was sold by Fonterra was contaminated with Clostridium botulinum the bacteria that causes  Botulism. The contamination was caused by a stainless steel pipe that was dirty. The pipe had been cleaned but then sat for a long time. It was put into use without cleaning it again.

Botulinum toxin is inside the bacteria which causes paralysis. It releases the toxin when the bacteria is replicating. But most of the toxin that causes the paralysis in humans is caused by a virus called bacteriophage. This virus kills bacteria by splitting it open. Thus the toxin gets released.

Clostridium botulinum lives as a spore, sometimes for several years. In its regular form it needs to be in an oxygen free environment. This is one of the factors that made the odds of products like whey powder unlikely to cause disease. Most of Fonterra whey was used in beverages. Coca Cola used it in sports drinks and many companies used it in baby formula. These products were heated to protect them from any bacterial contamination. Heating the beverages to 100 C (boiling) for 10 minutes will destroy the Botulinum toxin and damage the Clostridium botulinum so that it can not multiply or create more toxin.

If Botulism is caught early can be treated with an antivenom that comes from horses. The antivenom stops the Botulinum toxin from entering the bloodstream. This can prevent patients from worsening, but recovery still takes many weeks

The respiratory failure and paralysis that occur with severe botulism may require a patient to be on a ventilator for weeks, plus intensive medical and nursing care. After several weeks, the paralysis slowly improves.

Physicians may try to remove contaminated food still in the stomach by inducing vomiting or by using enemas. Wounds should be treated, usually surgically, to remove the source of the toxin-producing bacteria. Good supportive care in a hospital is the mainstay of therapy for all forms of botulism.[29]

The President of Fonterra announced even though they thought the chance of disease was small they felt that any chance of someone getting sick from their products was too much.

In an early report I stated that Fonterra had originally tested the Whey in march and didn't recall the product. It turns out that the earlier test did not catch the contamination. It was only when they tested it a second time that they found out about the  Clostridium botulinum. They issued the recall with in 24 hours.