E. Coli in Germany: Bad, but May Be Ending

"Health minister voices cautious optimism on E. coli"
Health, Deutsche Welle (June 6, 2011)

"German Health Minister Daniel Bahr has said he can't sound the all-clear on the E. coli outbreak in northern Germany, but that the latest figures offer 'reasonable cause for hope.'

"German Health Minister Daniel Bahr appeared on German public television Wednesday to say there were signs that the E. coli outbreak in Germany may be on the decline and that the spread of the deadly bacterial infection was slowing.

" 'There will be new cases and unfortunately we have to expect more deaths, but the number of new infections is dropping significantly,' Bahr said on the ARD network. 'I can't sound the all-clear, but after analyzing the latest data we have reasonable cause for hope.'..."

There's almost certainly going to be a huge amount of finger-pointing in Germany, Europe, and anywhere that's imported vegetables from Europe. There's also, the Lemming hopes, going to be some serious attention paid to just how E. coli got in the food supply - and how to keep it from happening again.

After that major outbreak in Germany, E. coli is a major news item here in America. People have gotten sick, and a two-year-old in Virginia died, but they're apparently not connected with the German outbreak. (FoxNews.com)

It's not really 'good news,' with 26 people dead so far in the European outbreak: but it looks like the worst is over.

In terms of the disease, that it.

Economic fallout from the E. coli outbreak will, in the Lemming's opinion, be around for a long time. And that's another topic.

Related posts:

• "E. Coli, Sprouts, Caution, and Business"
  (June 5, 2011)
• "EU E. Coli Mutant Killer Bacteria New!! Unknown!!! Or, Not"
  (June 2, 2011)
• "Rat Poo Peanut President is Back: As a Consultant"
  (September 9, 2010)
• "Salmonella in Eggs: Let the Blames Begin"
  (September 2, 2010)
• "And the Moral of This Story is: Don't Eat Raw Meat"
  (March 25, 2010)

In the news:

• "Health Officials: Latest U.S. E. Coli Cases Unrelated to Outbreak in Europe"
  Body & Mind, FoxNews.com (June 8, 2011)
• "E. coli: EU vegetable producers hit hard"
  News Europe, BBC News (June 8, 2011)
• "Health minister voices cautious optimism on E. coli"
  Health, Deutsche Welle (June 6, 2011)