Japan declares food poisoning threat receding .
TOKYO 1996-08-27
The government said on Tuesday that the threat from a mysterious killer germ , while still requiring vigilance , appears to be receding in the western Japan city of Sakai , where the epidemic hit the hardest .
The food poisoning epidemic caused by the O-157 colon bacillus in Sakai appears to be " settling down " , Health Minister Naoto Kan was quoted by a government spokesman as telling the cabinet .
The O-157 colon bacillus has been found responsible for a widespread food poisoning epidemic that has killed 11 people and made over 9,500 ill this year .
Sakai , near the regional commercial centre of Osaka , has been hit hardest by the deadly bacteria , with nearly 6,500 , mostly schoolchildren , affected by the disease .
Two children in Sakai have died from complications associated with the bacteria .
Kan told a cabinet meeting on Tuesday that no new victims have been reported since August 8 , indicating that the peak has passed , at least for Sakai .
Sakai officials agreed with the assessment , but said it was too early to feel relieved .
" There are still patients hospitalised and problems which must be dealt with , " a city spokesman said , citing the issue of whether to allow children infected with the bacteria but not showing symptoms to attend school from September .
Health authorities believe school lunches were the source of the food poisoning in Sakai , but researchers have been unable to pinpoint the exact source of the infection .
The outbreak has prompted authorities to tighten sanitary standards at slaughterhouses and meatpacking plants and sparked calls for an overhaul of the nation 's school lunch programme .
The ministers agreed at Tuesday 's cabinet meeting to step up inspection measures for school lunches in September and October , when schools around the country resume .
Japan 's Agriculture Ministry also announced that it will compile hygiene guidelines based on U.S. government methods of checking the safety of farm produce to prevent another outbreak of the epidemic .
As of Monday , 31 children were still hospitalised in Sakai city , of whom six were in serious condition .