Nasty strain of Salmonella, resistant to antibiotics

Callistemon21

I found this report in a Nottinghamshire paper:

People are being urged to take care over some imported chicken, turkey and eggs after hundreds were infected with Salmonella. An investigation is ongoing into multiple strains of Salmonella linked to poultry products imported to the UK from Poland
7/12/23

It can't be due to Brexit, Aveline because Poland is an EU country so the salmonella infected meat is being imported from the EU anyway.
🤔

Somehow this must have slipped through the restrictions and health checks which are in place.
See: Government Guidance on Importing food and drink from the EU to Great Britain.

What a bizarre post. Perhaps you are not aware that anything, meat or otherwise, can be currently be imported into the UK, from the EU, without any checks at all, NONE.

As said, Salmonella is your least worry.

MerylStreep

So it’s our fault for not inspecting contaminated meat and eggs that an eu country is exporting 😡

Well of course it is. And it's called 'bring back control'. Actually, salmonella is the least of your worries, as it can indeed be cooked away. Anything can come in- and there are many other deadly diseases that, if imported, could wipe what is left of the agriculture industry.

Aveline, you are 100% right of course- and for very good (extremely bad) reasons.

Is it maybe to do with a duck's digestive system? I remember a chef in France explaining that goose for example has less bacteria in the gut?
It's interesting, needs a bit more research, but I like my chicken and turkey very dry ( overcooked).

I had a similar conversation with a Michelin starred chef, they assured me that Duck, Pigeon, Guinea Fowl, and other breasts of game birds are cooked on the rare side perfectly safely.

An example of duck breast, to compare with anaemic looking chicken breast.

Isn't it because duck meat is darker (redder) to start with, so it looks very pink when served despite being cooked to a 160° temperature?

GrannyGravy13 I have always been puzzled by the fact that Chicken along with Turkey have to be well cooked whereas pigeon, guinea fowl, duck and all other birds are generally served very pink.

There's a lot of confusion about what meats can be cooked rare. My understanding is that a solid cut of meat like a steak can be rare in the middle as the bacteria are only on the outside. Duck breast can be cooked rare for a similar reason but other parts of duck should be well cooked. As far as I know, all kinds of birds can carry Salmonella and other food poisoning bacteria, so I don't think pigeon or guinea fowl should be served pink. The natural colour of the meat of some birds is quite dark so meat thermometer best way to check.

And a fridge thermometer, if your fridge doesn't have one built in 👍

Farmor's suggestion of a food probe thermometer is a good idea.

Surely if you buy your meat or chicken at a UK supermarket like Aldi, Lidl, Tesco, Sainsbury's, Co op etc all reputable stores they would have sourced the meat from reputable farmers. Where do the supposed poor buy their meat from? Back of a lorry 🤔 I don't think so. Scaremongering by the OP me thinks

When handling meat etc from any source including the U.K. you have to assume that salmonella is present and therefore food hygiene is paramount. Washing hands and surfaces together with utensils is important. Separate work surfaces are useful if you can run to it otherwise thorough cleaning after preparing meat - hot soapy water should do it

Yes, it's just basic common sense 🙂

You probably know all that info anyway- it's mainly common sense. One thing I would suggest is to buy a good food thermometer - the type with a probe and digital display

The butcher at the farm shop was selling those.
We use it a lot.

Aveline I have always been puzzled by the fact that Chicken along with Turkey have to be well cooked whereas pigeon, guinea fowl, duck and all other birds are generally served very pink.

DH caught Salmonella years ago from undercooked chicken at a hotel. No antibiotics. Just rehydration salts and time. He lost a huge amount of weight and was pretty ill. I was visited by Public Health who needed to find the source of the Salmonella. The hotel closed down shortly afterwards.

MerylStreep

So it’s our fault for not inspecting contaminated meat and eggs that an eu country is exporting 😡

And not the fault of the inadequate hygiene or farming practices of those other countries

Remember Edwina Currie and the eggs scandal where high number of chickens were found to have salmonella? It took 25 years for the industry to recover. However chickens were vaccinated against Salmonella and the Little Lion mark introduced on eggs. So measures can be taken, not only can be but should be.

Caleo you asked me if I could provide a guide to food safety. This NHS site is pretty good www.nhsinform.scot/healthy-living/food-and-nutrition/food-safety-and-hygiene/preparing-and-cooking-food-safely/
You probably know all that info anyway- it's mainly common sense. One thing I would suggest is to buy a good food thermometer - the type with a probe and digital display. People often overcook food when a thermometer would show if it was heated sufficiently.

Salmonella is killed in seconds at 60 deg.

The point I was making earlier is that British or organic food is not necessarily safer than imported. Food safety authorities in all European countries (whether in EU or not) carry out regular checks on food but every item cannot be checked. Food does not need to be sterile to be safe- just free of nasty bugs! If you went into a microbiologist's kitchen you might be horrified - most have lower standards than you would expect because they know what they're dealing with!

I'm off to France by car for a week tomorrow. Anyone want to give me their order for turkeys?
🦃 🦃

When handling meat etc from any source including the U.K. you have to assume that salmonella is present and therefore food hygiene is paramount. Washing hands and surfaces together with utensils is important. Separate work surfaces are useful if you can run to it otherwise thorough cleaning after preparing meat - hot soapy water should do it.

Heat is the only thing that kills the bacteria and chill/freezing delays its growth.

Some people are more susceptible to the virus than others who show no symptoms although they may carry it. That is why personal hygiene is also very important.

This is a lesson on how to teach your granny to suck eggs😄😄. But. T

The latest figures on Salmonella (Google) show EU has a higher rate than U.K. apart from Scotland.

So it’s our fault for not inspecting contaminated meat and eggs that an eu country is exporting 😡

I thought salmonella was one of those things that you don’t actually treat with antibiotics. At least that is what they say here.

I found this report in a Nottinghamshire paper:

People are being urged to take care over some imported chicken, turkey and eggs after hundreds were infected with Salmonella. An investigation is ongoing into multiple strains of Salmonella linked to poultry products imported to the UK from Poland
7/12/23

It can't be due to Brexit, Aveline because Poland is an EU country so the salmonella infected meat is being imported from the EU anyway.
🤔

Somehow this must have slipped through the restrictions and health checks which are in place.
See: Government Guidance on Importing food and drink from the EU to Great Britain.

Thank you MerylStreep it happened last year too, including some British poultry.

www.google.com/url?q=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/jul/05/dangerous-strain-of-salmonella-becoming-more-common-in-uk-meat%23:~:text%3DThe%2520most%2520recent%2520public%2520health,not%2520every%2520case%2520is%2520reported.&sa=U&sqi=2&ved=2ahUKEwjBhKaPu4iDAxWi1QIHHYbnD0AQFnoECBMQBQ&usg=AOvVaw0pN6XHuCukKSAial4jJJL1

This article states that the uk had 21 cases and France, 19

www.foodsafetynews.com/2023/10/chicken-linked-to-large-multi-country-outbreak/