Opinion of the Scientific Panel on biological hazards (BIOHAZ) on Bacillus cereus and other Bacillus spp in foodstuffs

Abstract

Bacillus cereus is the cause of two kinds of foodborne diseases, an emetic (vomiting) intoxication due to the ingestion of a toxin (cereulide) pre-formed in the food and a diarrhoeal infection due to the ingestion of bacterial cells/spores which produce enterotoxins in the small intestine. Other Bacillus spp., B. subtilis, B. licheniformis, B. pumilus have more rarely beeen identified as agents of foodborne diseases characterized by diarrhoea and/or vomiting. Emetic intoxication is caused by a very homogeneous group of strains of B. cereus identified by their ability to produce cereulide. In contrast, B. cereus strains able to cause diarrhoea are not easy to identify because the mechanisms leading to infection are complex and diverse. Very little is known on the virulence mechanisms of other Bacillus spp and therefore it is not possible to identify the strains able to cause foodborne poisoning.