43 people fell ill with clostridium perfringens after dining at the pub which temporarily closed to undergo a deep clean
Dozens of diners have been struck down with food poisoning following a Sunday roast at a village pub.
The Corner House Inn in Llangynwyd, near Maesteg in Wales, announced on December 1 it would shut its doors for a ‘deep clean’ in the wake of the outbreak. Public Health Wales (PHW) has now confirmed 43 people have been taken ill.
A PHW spokesperson said on Tuesday: “Public Health Wales, working with Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board and environmental health officers from shared regulatory services, is concluding its investigation into reports of illness following customers eating Sunday lunch at the Corner House Inn in Llangynwyd, Maesteg.
“We have received 43 reports of illness in people who ate food prepared at the premises. We can confirm that clostridium perfringens has been identified as the cause of this illness. The risk to the public is low, and we do not expect to see further cases associated with this incident.”
PHW noted the establishment had handled the matter in a “constructive and proactive way.” In a statement posted to Facebook, Corner House Inn’s owners pledged to continue working with environmental health officers to safeguard both staff and customers, reports the Mirror. The business remains open.
The post said: “As you are aware we contacted environmental health ourselves to come out after people had become ill after coming to our restaurant, we have said that we will be honest throughout and will continue to do so. Environmental health has called today and made us aware that an organism (clostridium perfringens) has been found but the investigation is still ongoing.
“We are still working with them to ensure the safety of our customers and staff. The restaurant is still open during opening hours. Thank you all for your continued support.”
This is the second time in two months that a food poisoning outbreak has happened in Wales. In October, a clostridium perfringens outbreak at the The Cwrt Henllys Bar and Restaurant in Cwmbran following a Sunday lunch.
According to the Food Standards Agency “clostridium perfringens is a bacteria widespread in animals and the environment”. People get ill from it after eating contaminated meat or poultry that’s been left out for too long.
The Food Standards Agency site reads: “The bacteria can develop spores which can survive cooking and grow during slow cooling and unrefrigerated storage. These spores can make you ill.
“Outbreaks of C. perfringens food poisoning tend to happen in settings where large groups of people and/or food are being served and where keeping food at safe temperatures may be difficult. This also applies to batch cooking at home where you may leave food out to cool longer than you intended while preparing other food.
“People who are most likely to suffer severe symptoms are young children, pregnant women, people with an underlying health condition (e.g. cancer, diabetes, liver and kidney disease) and older people.”
