A Brief History
On January 9, 2015, a funeral in Mozambique was the eerily appropriate venue for a disaster involving the favorite bubbly beverage of millions, or even billions, of people. The funeral goers were supplied with the local brew they call pombe, and sadly the beer was contaminated with a deadly germ called Burkholderia gladioli.
Digging Deeper
Beer has been a staple beverage and even food for many centuries, and generally speaking if consumed in moderation it can have beneficial effects on health. Like many other foods and drinks, when consumed to excess, bad things can happen. Or in the case of our deadly funeral, if production allows for contamination, your health and even your life may be in danger.
Investigators first thought ingredients such as crocodile bile or the Foxglove flower may have caused the problem, but they later found the bacteria to be the culprit, killing 75 and making another 230 ill.
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Historical Evidence
For more information, please see…
Bostwick, William. The Brewer’s Tale: A History of the World According to Beer. W. W. Norton & Company, 2015.
Lepeley, Anna. Beer Is Good For You. Kindle, 2017.
The featured image in this article, an illustration by Edurs34, is licensed under the Pixabay Content License.
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