Chicken at food safety summit source of illness

BALTIMORE (AP) — Experts who attended a Food Safety Summit in Baltimore in April should have skipped lunch.

The Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene released a report Thursday that says the chicken Marsala served at a buffet lunch on April 9 during the 2014 Food Safety Summit at the Baltimore Convention Center caused a gastroenteritis outbreak that sickened 216 attendees.

The report says of the 216 attendees who got sick, 157 ate the chicken. Symptoms included diarrhea, nausea, stomach cramps and, in some cases, vomiting. The report says the chicken may not have been kept at the proper temperature.

Centerplate, the convention’s in-house catering company, provided the means at the summit, which attracted roughly 1,300 food safety experts to Baltimore.

Centerplate did not immediately return a call for comment.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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