Another food poisoning that affected the youth surfaced.
Almost 400 students from the Real Elementary School were hospitalized and the pointed culprits are sponge cake, locally known as mamon and ice candy on July 24.
After consuming the said sweets the students experienced stomach pain and nausea, said Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Region 4 Director Vicente Tomazar. 175 of the students were taken to Calamba Medical Center (CMC), 45 to the Panama Hospital, 22 to the St. John Hospital and four to the J.P. Rizal Provincial Hospital.
A private organization AMS Electronic Company bought the mamon and ice candy and distributed them as part of the outreach program of the City College of Calamba. The company had gone to Real Elementary School as part of its community program.
Based on the 5:00 statement of CMC of July 24, 172 out of 175 patients were already discharged.
Department of Health spokesperson Lyndon Lee Suy said samples of the mamon and ice candies were collected by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for testing.
City Health officer Adelino Labro said Mayor Justin Marc has ordered attention for the victims. Several representatives from the local government unit (LGU) of the town were dispatched in different hospital to attend to the needs of the victims.
Laguna is the newest area in the Philippines that reported food poisoning in July alone.