Ice Reports

Ice machine violations are a serious public health concern. This web-page catalogs news reports to highlight the dangers of unsafe ice and recent food safety warnings.

If you make your own ice, read these steps to properly inspect and clean your ice machine. Or if you're buying ice from the store, look for the IPIA seal of approval — the gold standard in packaged ice manufacturing. IPIA packaged ice is never touched by human hands.

What You Should Know Before Using The Ice Machine At A Restaurant

An article in Tasting Table highlights the dangers of unsanitary ice machines in restaurants. "Before you order your next drink at a restaurant, you might want to think twice about ice — not because it waters down your soda but because it is, according to BES Group, about as germ-ridden as toilet water. Studies in the U.S., the UK, and China have repeatedly shown high levels of potentially dangerous bacteria, including E. coli, Salmonella, Listeria, and coliform bacteria, as well as mold in restaurant ice machines. This disgusting and dangerous problem is most commonly caused by a simple lack of hygiene."

What is that Pink Slime in the Ice Machine?

WREG reports on the dangers of biofilm, also known as "pink slime" in ice machines that could lead to serious health problems if ingested by consumers. Pink slime buildup is the result of the right combination of environmental factors for bacteria to thrive. Biofilms are the result of microorganisms attaching to a surface. Oftentimes, the slime is a result of mold or fungus that has accumulated from bacteria growth on a surface that is constantly exposed to clinging water droplets and warm temperatures. As an expert on food safety points out, “Once well-developed biofilms establish themselves on surfaces, cleaning and sanitation become much more difficult.”

5 Hospitals Facing Mold Issues This Year

Becker's Hospital Review reports on a hospital that was shut down due to mold found in an ice machine. "Numerous hospitals have detected molds in their facilities over the past year, capturing the attention of readers...The hospital shut down its labor and delivery unit after discovering mold July 18 in a nutrition room, and later, in other areas of the hospital, Tyler Hedden, the hospital's interim chief executive, told Becker's Hospital Review. The mold in the nutrition room was caused by an ice machine not draining properly."

Ice 'contaminated' at Food Court Subway

WPLG Local 10 reports on a critical ice machine violation in Sunrise, FL. "A State Inspector found a moldy, slime-like substance in the ice machine at the Subway in Sawgrass Mills Mall last week. The situation was apparently so bad the Inspector told employees to stop using the ice! While mold/slime in the ice machine is not an unusual violation, this is the first time we have seen an Inspector order the ice not be served. The mold/slime had direct contact with the ice they were serving you"

Mold Found in Columbia Eateries' Ice Machines

KMIZ reports on critical ice machine violations in Missouri. "The U.S. Food and Drug Administration considers ice a food, and it’s been the culprit behind critical violations given to eateries in Boone County. In the last five months, ABC 17 News has reported The Columbia/Boone County Public Health Department has handed out at least 27 critical violations for mold in an ice machine. The critical violation can directly impact the drinks served at a restaurant."

ESPN: What's Lurking In Your Stadium Food?

ESPN's Outside the Lines published an article documenting lax sanitation standards at sporting venues across the country. The article highlights the inherent dangers of ice that is handled properly. "Handwashing can factor in in unexpected ways, such as someone's bare hands coming into contact with ice while scooping it out of an ice machine, Liggins Coly said. That can be a big problem at stadiums, where people often drink more than they eat.'Many people don't even know that ice is food,' she said."

Costa and Subway Cafes in Hospitals 'Are Putting Patients At Risk' Because They Are Contaminated With Salmonella and Staphylococcus Bacteria

The Daily Mail reports on unsanitary ice in Costa and Subway cafes in the United Kingdom. "A sample of ice in one of the Subway cafes was also found to contain staphylococcus, as did one sample from a tray. Staphylococcus was found in one sample of ice from Costa Coffee as well as four tray samples and one table sample.The bug can cause staph infections, which typically result in rashes and blotches the skin, but can lead to blood poisoning or sepsis. Environmental Health specialist Sian Buckley said the results were 'unacceptable' because patients with weakened immune systems are coming into regular contact with the cafes.

Slimed, not stirred: Drinking in South Florida can be hazardous to your health

"Local 10 News spent a day with Saltzman, who deals with bacteria, mold, slime and yeast build-ups in ice machines every day. 'It's a big problem in South Florida,' Saltzman said. When ignored, the slime grows and grows. In one instance, we saw yeast build up in an ice machine at a Dania Beach bar. 'It was gooey, slimy and had a slight odor.If you eat that, it's like taking a fungi from a tree outside and eating it. It will make you sick. It can cause diarrhea, vomiting and food poisoning,' Saltzman said."

Business Insider: A Bartender Says There's a Disgusting Reason to Order Beer or Wine Over Cocktails

Business Insider recently asked more than 30 bartenders to weigh in on what they'd love to tell customers but can't. One bartender said restaurants and bars don't keep their ice machines as clean as you think. 'In most instances, ice machines must be cleaned from two to four times a year, or 'at a frequency necessary to preclude accumulation of soil or mold. 'If establishments are found not to be sanitizing their ice machines frequently enough, they could face a fine of $100,000 in regular circumstances, or up to $250,000 for individuals and $500,000 for corporations if the misdemeanor results in death."

Slime In Ice Machines: How to Spot the Moldy Mess

KPRC 2 Houston outlines the steps for properly cleaning an ice machine, while also cautioning the health risks of ice that comes from unsanitary machines. "In addition to that, he said, once a year they have the machine undergo an even more intense cleaning, in which it is professionally scrubbed and sanitized by the folks at QBR Refrigeration, where Spellins works. 'You have to do it,' Salti said. 'You can’t take chances with slime in the ice machine. If you have a dirty ice machine, you are going to make a lot of people sick. They can vomit. It could cause diarrhea, foodborne illness, really bad stuff.'"

The 'Dirty' Little Secret About Ice Machines At Restaurants

If you care about the safety of the food you eat, experts say you should also pay attention to the things you drink. The ice in your glass might be the most transparent part of your meal, but it is just as likely as anything to make you sick. “The same risk you can get from food, salmonella, E.coli, any of those pathogens can also be found on ice,” stated Sherri Woodus, Retail Food Section Chief for the Arkansas Department of Health. “Most people think that, because ice is cold, that it will cause those pathogens to die off. It doesn’t.”

Mold and biofilm can develop if ice machines are not properly maintained. Woodus said most machines need professional cleanings twice a year. A study conducted in Las Vegas in 2011 showed that approximately one-third of commercial ice machines were breeding grounds for dangerous bacteria, and more than 70 percent contained indicators that bacteria could be present... Aside from mold, ice often becomes contaminated by careless workers. Dirty hands can contaminate ice in a number of ways. Some food service workers, McAllen said, use their hands to pick ice out of the machine. But secondary transfer is also a concern.

High Levels of Bacteria from Feces Found in Ice at KFC

The Telegraph: "Undercover investigators for BBC's Rip Off Britain found the contaminated ice while visiting several big-name takeaways and coffee shops. Dr Margarita Gomez Escalada, who studied the sample at Leeds Beckett University, told the programme: 'We found high levels of bacteria in the ice. The presence of faecal coliform suggests that there's faecal contamination either on the water that made the ice, or the ice itself, and so it increases the risk of getting sick from consuming this ice.' KFC said it was extremely disappointed and had launched an investigation into food hygiene at its Martineau Place branch in Birmingham."

Study Finds E. Coli in Ice Cubes

Barf Blog: "More than a quarter of ice cubes used in Swiss bars and restaurants contain fecal bacteria such as E. coli, according to a nationwide study by the Swiss cantonal chemists association (VKCS). In an analysis of ice cube samples collected from bars, restaurants and canteens around Switzerland last year, 26 percent fell short of legal health standards, said Sunday paper SonntagsBlick, which released the figure prior to the report’s official publication. The presence of bacteria including pseudomonas, E. coli and enterococci is “a clear sign of unsanitary production of ice cubes,” Otmar Deflorin, president of the cantonal chemists association and head of the Swiss federal laboratory in Bern, told SonntagsBlick."

Contaminated Ice Linked to San Diego Norovirus Outbreak

Times of San Diego: "Two months after a norovirus outbreak at Bali Hai restaurant, county health officials have fingered ice as the foodborne source that sickened at least 61 people — including three in a wedding party... In its final report to the San Diego SPJ, the county said 84 of the 172 people at the July 29 banquet returned surveys on what they ate and other issues. Fifty were sickened by the norovirus type GI.1. (Eight others also reported getting ill.)... [County Spokesman Michael Workman said someone — an employee or not — could have contaminated an ice scoop, which led to the spread of the highly contagious pathogen. It has been identified in at least 37 illness outbreaks this year in San Diego County."

Barf Blog: 4 Ice Safety Steps for Restaurants, Bars, and Hotels

Barf Blog: "During my career as a Health Inspector, one question often asked by the public is 'How safe is the ice in food and drinks serve in restaurants?' There is no easy Yes or No answer without having to explain how ice can be contaminated and in what conditions that ice can cause illness. In general, we tend to view ice much the same way we do with drinking water coming out from the tap, and assume that both water and ice are 'clean.' Ice must be treated like food, as both can be a source of foodborne illness if not handled safely."

ABC News: Bacteria Found in Ice at Several Restaurants

An ABC News affiliate in Salt Lake City, Utah, finds that many restaurant owners are unaware of the amount of bacteria and fungus in their ice machines, and are unaware that the freezing process does not eliminate the bacteria from the water. Further, even when confronted with evidence that their ice may by contaminated, some business owners refused to change their habits to improve the safety of the ice they serve.

Robert Irvine: 'Ice is Very, Very Dangerous'

According to celebrity chef and 'Restaurant: Impossible' host Robert Irvine, unsanitary ice machines pose one of the most significant threats in consumer food safety. In an interview with Total Food Service, Irvine explains that "by going into these places and actually seeing the state of what the ice machines look like, I can tell you how clean and safe the whole operation is. I've seen everything that could possibly happen to an ice machine, cockroaches in it, bacteria in it, even mold growing in the ice cubes. And it's something that nobody ever thinks about, but we put it into drinks. We feed children, old people, young people with it."

Irvine goes on to explain that "sickness has no boundaries. And what I've seen is that ice machines are very dangerous if they're not handled correctly. Because it only takes one person to ingest mold and tragically die. And if they're 80 years old or 12 years old and they get sick, they could die. I use that all the time on my show, Restaurant: Impossible. Ice is very, very dangerous."

Your Ice Could Be Dirty

NBC News: "We took our hidden camera to a dozen food service locations across Connecticut, including fast-food joints, mall eateries and restaurants. Right away, we saw employees at the Wendy's in West Hartford dredging drink cups through the ice with their bare hands."

"The next thing we found was even more disturbing. Our camera caught employees touching the ice with their bare hands. Minutes earlier, another employee placed the bucket of ice on the floor, uncovered. Dupont said it's poor practice."

Fast-Food Ice Dirtier Than Toilet Water

ABC News: "Jasmine Roberts never expected her award-winning middle school science project to get so much attention. But the project produced some disturbing results: 70 percent of the time, ice from fast food restaurants was dirtier than toilet water."

"The 12-year-old collected ice samples from five restaurants in South Florida -- from both self-serve machines inside the restaurant and from drive-thru windows. She then collected toilet water samples from the same restaurants and tested all of them for bacteria at the University of South Florida. In several cases, the ice tested positive for E. coli bacteria, which comes from human waste and has been linked to several illness outbreaks across the country."

For more information about Safe Ice go to www.packagedice.com.

Ice Contamination Reports