Australia still has an egg problem, state of New South Wales trying to do something about it

Posted on February 1, 2019 by Douglas Powell

The NSW Food Authority is urging people to check their kitchens for any eggs that are marked with the identifying stamp BEC or BEC115 because they may be contaminated with a particular type of Salmonella.

The stamp BEC or BEC115 will be found on the shell of individual eggs, not on the carton.

NSW Food Authority CEO Dr Lisa Szabo said thanks to mandatory egg stamping required in NSW, the Food Authority has been able to isolate the particular batch of eggs.

“All other eggs are safe to eat, provided people exercise the usual caution required for a special care food like eggs such as washing your hands and avoiding raw egg products particularly if you are a vulnerable population such as the immune compromised, under two or over 70 years of age or pregnant,” Dr Szabo said.

(That means asking at a restaurant or catered meal if the aioli or mayonnaise served with many dishes, especially great Australian seafood, was made with raw or pasteurized eggs, or was commercially purchased.)

“It is important to know that not all eggs are impacted but if you have any stamped with BEC or BEC115 we recommend as a precaution that you discard them.

“We typically see a rise in Salmonella during the warmer summer months, so this is an opportune time to remind people to practice good hygiene generally when preparing food and to always keep their hands, surfaces and utensils clean and dry before and after handling eggs.”

NSW Health data indicates that during January 2019, 412 cases of Salmonella infection have been notified, which is similar to the number notified during January in recent years. Children under 5 years of age account for most cases notified this month, although all age groups are affected.

The NSW Food Authority placed a Prohibition Order on the business that produced the eggs earlier in January preventing them from selling eggs while the possible Salmonella contamination was investigated.

“While it is likely that most affected eggs are no longer in the supply chain, it is possible that people may have purchased them earlier and still have some at home in the fridge or pantry,” Dr Szabo said.

“We’d just like people to check and if they do have any eggs stamped BEC or BEC115 to throw them out to avoid any risk of food poisoning.”

Further information about how to reduce your food safety risk when consuming eggs can be found at www.foodauthority.nsw.gov.au/eggs

An updated table of Australian egg-related outbreaks) is available here.

Australia still has an egg problem: Over 200 with Salmonella across NSW as temps rise

Posted on December 12, 2017 by Douglas Powell

Providing food safety advice without preaching is tricky.

Matching the advice with what happens in reality is damn hard.

Amy, Sorenne and I are hanging out in Canberra – Australia’s capital — for the next couple of days while Amy goes to a French conference and Sorenne teaches me how to play Minecraft.

Dinner last night, including chicken wings and potato-somethings, were both served with aioli.

I asked the server, how was the aioli prepared, is it a commercial product or is it made with raw eggs?

Oh, we make our own aioli. We would never buy the commercial product.

No thanks.

Amy said, serve it on the side, I’ll take the risk.

So did Sorenne, although we did have a chat about microbiology (seize those learning moments).

This in context of health authorities warning people to take precautions to prevent salmonella poisonings, with 201 cases already reported in late November as temperatures start to climb.

Of the 4.1 million cases of food poisoning in Australia each year around a third of reported outbreaks are linked to raw or lightly cooked eggs.

Dr Vicky Sheppeard, Directors of Communicable Diseases at NSW Health said the best defence against salmonellosis was careful food preparation and food storage.

“Products containing undercooked eggs, and the spread of germs in the kitchen, are the most common source of salmonellosis outbreaks in NSW.”

NSW Food Authority CEO Dr Lisa Szabo said using commercially produced products instead of handmade mayonnaise and sauces when preparing food also reduced the risk of Salmonella poisoning.

“It is also much safer to use commercially pasteurised eggs rather than raw eggs in ready-to-eat products such as desserts and dressings,” DrSzabo said.

Good luck with that.

Barf’s Up: Brisbane seafood restaurant fined $37,000 after raw-egg aioli sickens 29

Posted on June 23, 2017 by Douglas Powell

For casual-corporate barf, nothing beats the South Bank Surf Club.

The South Bank Parklands, which were established on the former site of World Expo 88, are one of Brisbane’s most popular tourist attractions.

Approximately 11,000,000 people visit the South Bank Parklands each year.

On Sept. 23, 2015, Brisbane’s South Bank Surf Club allegedly made up a large batch of raw-egg-based aioli sauce and served it for seven days.

At least 29 diners were sickened.

At the time, the manager of the club said the cause was “a bad batch of eggs’’ provided by a supplier. They said the eggs had been used in sauces served with seafood platters.

“We’ve been caught out, unfortunately. Our customers’ wellbeing is our priority and anyone with concerns can get in touch with us,” they said. “To rectify the problem, we are not making sauces in-house.’’

Guess they were too busy courting biz-cas types to worry about microbiology.

The South Bank Surf Club was fined $37,000 this week for its food-porn mistake in making aioli dip with raw eggs, then leaving the dip out on a warm counter for hours.

Lawyers for the restaurant on Thursday entered guilty pleas to 22 charges of serving unsafe food over eight days.

The charges did not arise from unhygienic practices and the company had no knowledge the food was unsafe, the court heard.

Really?

Western Australian hockey player Kelli Reilly had snacked on buffalo wings with aioli sauce with her team at the restaurant the day before they were due to play in the final of a masters competition in Brisbane.

They won gold at the tournament but soon after, Ms Reilly was hospitalised for three days and still suffers from the salmonella poisoning.

She has not been able to play hockey since and has sworn off aioli.

‘I’ve been through a lot, I’d probably not like to comment on it all because it has impacted me a lot and my family,’ she said outside court.

‘I would not wish this on anybody.’

A table of Australian egg outbreaks is available at https://barfblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/raw-egg-related-outbreaks-australia-10-9-15.xlsx.

Australia still has an egg problem as Salmonella cases surge in WA

Posted on June 9, 2017 by Douglas Powell

West Australians are being warned to avoid eating raw or partly cooked eggs because of a surge in cases of salmonella food poisoning.

Reports of salmonella gastroenteritis are at records levels and have been linked to particular molecular types associated with eggs.

The WA Health Department said yesterday there had been 713 reported infections from salmonella typhimurium by the end of April, which was more than four times the usual number.

The infection was commonly associated with consumption of foods containing raw or under-cooked eggs.

A spokeswoman told Cathy O’Leary of The West Australian that cases of the salmonella infection had been increasing in WA since 2015 but had accelerated since late last year.

“There are two molecular subtypes, PFGE1 and PFGE43, that are currently causing most of this increase,” she said.

“Epidemiological evidence from investigations of identified localised outbreaks and a large case-control study of community cases indicates that eating raw or runny eggs is a significant cause of illness. This includes breakfast dishes containing eggs, and desserts and aioli made with raw eggs.”

Environmental investigations indicated some outbreaks had been caused by poor handling of egg products at the food manufacturing and preparation level and by consumers.

The department said that while eggs were a good source of vitamins and minerals, like many other foods they could be contaminated with bacteria, including salmonella. It was important to handle and prepare eggs safely to reduce the food poisoning risk.

“The department recommends that people don’t use cracked or dirty eggs in raw egg dishes,” she said.

“If possible, it is best to avoid any uncooked foods or dishes that contain raw egg.

“This is because it is impossible to guarantee the safety of eating raw eggs and dishes that contain unpasteurised raw egg products.”

A selection of egg-related outbreaks in Australia can be found here.

Barf’s up: South Bank Surf Club faces 32 charges after 28 sickened with raw egg aioli

Posted on November 6, 2016 by Douglas Powell

On Sept. 23, 2015, Brisbane’s South Bank Surf Club allegedly made up a large batch of raw-egg-based aioli sauce and served it for seven days.

At least 28 diners were sickened.

At the time, the manager of the club said the cause was “a bad batch of eggs’’ provided by a supplier. They said the eggs had been used in sauces served with seafood platters.

This is a common refrain in Australia.

We, the chefs, would never put the health of our customers in harm’s way, yet they continue to do so with the line, we got a bad batch of eggs.

Now, Brisbane City Council health inspectors have filed a complaint in Brisbane Magistrates Court accusing the club, owned by Brisbane hospitality king Bevan Bickle, of letting the aioli and other sauces sit kitchen benches for up to three hours without refrigeration on the day they were used in meals including fish and chips, burgers and pulled pork sandwiches between September 23 and October 1 last year.

Court documents state aioli is a “potentially hazardous food” because “pathogenic microorganisms” can grow due to the raw egg and it needs to be refrigerated.

The club faces 32 charges of breaching food safety laws.

When inspector Heath Vogler visited the restaurant on October 16 he alleges the aioli was kept at 11C.

The council summons filed in court states aioli must be stored below 5C to minimise the growth of poisonous bacteria.

The case returns to court on December 23. The restaurant has not entered a plea.

A table of Australian egg outbreaks is available at https://barfblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/raw-egg-related-outbreaks-australia-10-9-15.xlsx

Aioli, raw egg and food porn

Posted on July 20, 2015 by Douglas Powell

There’s a self-congratulatory culture within self-titled food advocates who care more about food porn than microbial safety – the things that make people barf.

And why The New Times is becoming increasing irrelevant (and please, stop sending me those thrice daily e-mails about the latest subscription special).

Columnist Mark Bittman, advocate of many microbiologically dubious practices – I wonder if he’s has ever used a thermometer – writes that Alice Waters is probably the most important American in food.

Bittman writes he wasn’t surprised to see her making the aioli — garlic mayonnaise to serve with the fish and its accompaniments — in the most inefficient and old-fashioned way possible: using a mortar and pestle to mash the garlic, a fork to whip up the emulsion and no lemon juice, vinegar or any other acid at all. It was the best mayonnaise I’ve ever tasted, but then again, she did use a wonderfully perfumed olive oil.

And probably a raw egg.

Consumer shell egg consumption and handling practices: results from a national survey

Journal of Food Protection®, Number 7, July 2015, pp. 1250-1419

Kosa, Katherine M., Cates, Sheryl C., Bradley, Samantha, Godwin, Sandria, Chambers, Delores

http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/iafp/jfp/2015/00000078/00000007/art00010

Abstract:

Numerous cases and outbreaks of Salmonella infection are attributable to shell eggs each year in the United States. Safe handling and consumption of shell eggs at home can help reduce foodborne illness attributable to shell eggs.

A nationally representative Web survey of 1,504 U.S. adult grocery shoppers was conducted to describe consumer handling practices and consumption of shell eggs at home. Based on self-reported survey data, most respondents purchase shell eggs from a grocery store (89.5%), and these eggs were kept refrigerated (not at room temperature; 98.5%). As recommended, most consumers stored shell eggs in the refrigerator (99%) for no more than 3 to 5 weeks (97.6%). After cracking eggs, 48.1% of respondents washed their hands with soap and water. More than half of respondents who fry and/or poach eggs cooked them so that the whites and/or the yolks were still soft or runny, a potentially unsafe practice. Among respondents who owned a food thermometer (62.0%), only 5.2% used it to check the doneness of baked egg dishes the they prepared such a dish. Consumers generally followed two of the four core “Safe Food Families” food safety messages (“separate” and “chill”) when handling shell eggs at home.

To prevent Salmonella infection associated with shell eggs, consumers should improve their practices related to the messages “clean” (i.e., wash hands after cracking eggs) and “cook” (i.e., cook until yolks and whites are firm and use a food thermometer to check doneness of baked egg dishes) when preparing shell eggs at home. These findings will be used to inform the development of science-based consumer education materials that can help reduce foodborne illness from Salmonella infection.

Why I don’t get invited to dinner and Australia still has an egg problem

Posted on June 3, 2015 by Douglas Powell

Amy went out for dinner last night with some uni colleagues.

She checked out the menu beforehand – as you do when living with a food safety type for 10 years – and I was encouraged by the 50C salmon and 65C eggs.

Unfortunately, this was the summer menu and it’s winter here.

And I noticed the aioli on the menu, and asked Amy, ask the server if it’s made with raw eggs.

Of course it was.

When those questions are asked in a restaurant, servers think you want to hear whatever is fashionable.

Ten years ago I was sitting in a B.C. restaurant with Chapman and a provincial health inspector, and ordered fish, and asked, is it farmed or wild?

He assured me it was wild.

I said I wanted farmed because that left a smaller ecological footprint.

He said, no one had ever asked for farmed, and eventually admitted that yeah, some of it was farmed.

So how are consumers supposed to know?

They don’t. It’s all faith-based.

I made dinner for Amy before she went out.

She didn’t eat the aioli.

While it’s nice that Dr Paul Armstrong, chairman of the Communicable Diseases Network Australia, acknowledged the other day that, “We have an ongoing problem with salmonella infections linked with chickens, particularly eggs,” it doesn’t help diners who are served raw-egg aioli.

Australia has an egg problem.

Individual stamps on every egg to trace Salmonella are a rotten idea, say small Australian egg producers

Posted on September 8, 2014 by Douglas Powell

We went with another family to our favorite fish shop for dinner last night after an outing in the park with our daughters.

The restaurant owners know not to serve me the aioli which includes raw egg.

We’ve had that conversation.

ABC Rural reports that small-scale egg producers in New South Wales say compulsory stamps on every single egg are a rotten idea.

From November, NSW will follow Queensland to require all bought eggs to have stamps so any food poisoning outbreak like Salmonella can be traced back.

But small producers argue it would cost them up to $30,000 to install and manage the stamping equipment.

NSW Egg Farmers Association director Jo Damjanovic says if consumers get sick, it’s easier to trace the cartons than eggs.

“The egg would be used up by the consumer, the egg shell would be thrown in the rubbish and the traceability would be thrown in the rubbish as well.

“It’s just ridiculous to think you can jigsaw-puzzle a piece of eggshell back together to figure out where that egg came from.”

The NSW Government says egg producers have had two years to prepare for the new national standards and there are exemptions for micro egg producers, those who turn out 1,000 eggs a day or 20 dozen a week.

Eggs sold at the farm gate also will not require a stamp, nor will those sold for charity.

NSW Primary Industries Minister Katrina Hodgkinson says eggs are one of the leading sources of Salmonella.

“Between 2010 and 2014, there were 40 food poisoning outbreaks associated with eggs, affecting more than 700 people.”

But Mr Damjanovic says a report he commissioned to assess the Regulatory Impact Statement found there has been no improved traceback in Queensland, where they’ve been stamping eggs since 2005.

Food safety, Salmonella, sprouts and no, that dingo didn’t eat my baby

Posted on July 4, 2014 by Douglas Powell

We used to be known as, “The no sprouts people.”

If Amy or I ordered anything, we’d say, no sprouts please.

We fell out of that habit because so much of foodservice in the U.S. has removed raw sprouts from the menu.

But it’s still 1978 in Australia.

With two weeks of school holidays, we decided on a mild road trip north to explore more of the country than the 15km radius we could reach by bicycle (yes, I know it’s not far, but is when hauling a kid in a trailer).

We spent three days at Rainbow Beach, including a day trip to Fraser Island, the world’s largest sand island. Our guide had been a chef for over 20 years and said, no more, gotta get back to what he loves, and that was hanging out on the Island.

We saw whales and four different dingoes going for bait from fishers; they didn’t eat any babies but we know a lot more about dingo safety.

Next stop: Hervey Bay, a renowned area for sea scallops and purportedly the best whale watching in Australia.

We arrived tired and went to a restaurant at lunch that had fabulous seafood, but raw sprouts on every dish.

We had forgotten we were the no-sprouts family, although I did have a word with the server on the way out.

Next, Bundaberg, sugar cane and rum capital of Australia, with a slavery past that has now somewhat transformed to a mixture of hippies and bogans.

Amy had looked on-line, and decided where we were going to lunch.

I placed the order, and the server explained all the food was local and naturally sourced. I internally groaned and rolled my eyes.

Then I remembered I needed some tomato sauce — what North Americans would call ketchup – for the kid.

“Oh, you don’t want the aioli?”

“No, wait, can you tell me how the aioli is made? Does it contain raw eggs?”

Oh yeah, everything here is made from scratch, but I’ll check.”

Thirty seconds later, the chef appeared.

“We only use commercial mayonnaise for mayo and aioli. Everything else we make from scratch but not this one.”

Why?

Because my brother was one of the 220 that got sick from Salmonella from raw-egg mayo on Melbourne Cup day in Brisbane in 2013. And I’m not putting my business at risk over one decision that is easy to make.

Good on ya.

A table of raw egg related outbreaks in Australia is available at https://barfblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/raw-egg-related-outbreaks-australia-3-3-14.xlsx.

Australia only now coming to grips with food safety basics

Posted on March 4, 2014 by Douglas Powell

Ash Lewis was limp in his mother’s arms. The three-year-old boy had been sick for several days, in and out of the family doctor’s surgery and up all night with diarrhea.

That Sunday he had been happily playing on the beach at Torquay on Victoria’s west coast and later munching on an egg and cheese roll at a beachside cafe. He and his mother had left Melbourne to escape February’s heatwave.

By Thursday his condition had gone downhill fast. He stopped speaking and couldn’t walk. His parents, Scott and Sarina Lewis, rushed him to the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne. His blood pressure was down, his heart rate was low and his face was the ”colour of concrete.”

From the happy little boy playing in the sea he was now in hospital with an IV drip in his arm.

An estimate by the federal Department of Health puts the number of Australians contracting food-borne illness at 5.4 million cases, or nearly one in four, with 120 people so seriously affected they die. The cost to the economy has been put at $1.25 billion.

Richard Cornish of Good Food writes that incidents involving Salmonella have almost doubled in the past 10 years, from 6,990 in 2003 to 12,836 in 2013. In Brisbane last year, 220 people became ill and one elderly woman died after a Melbourne Cup lunch. The finger was pointed at raw egg mayonnaise contaminated with salmonella. In 2010, salmonella-contaminated aioli made with raw egg was found to be the cause of an outbreak in a hamburger bar that struck down 179 people

A stool sample taken from Ash confirmed he was infected with Salmonella bacteria causing gastroenteritis. The sandwich he ate at that cafe was prepared with mayonnaise made with free-range eggs. Owners of the cafe we spoke to believe this is the most likely cause of the food poisoning.

Brett Graham is the co-owner of the Bottle of Milk in Torquay. At the time of writing his cafe was still closed, three weeks after the food poisoning outbreak was identified. He has scrubbed his business from floor to ceiling, spent $20,000 rebuilding the kitchen, complete with new fridges and dishwashers, and installed a window so diners can look in. “No one intentionally tries to make someone sick. I, we [he has a business partner], we feel terrible,” he says. “It’s a small town and a lot of people we know personally have been affected.”

The business is still paying their staff of 20.

Seventy-seven diners who fell ill after eating at Canberra restaurant Copa Brazilian Churrasco last year are at present taking civil action against its owners in the ACT Supreme Court. A total of 140 people fell ill, with 15 taken to hospital, after eating home-made mayonnaise at the restaurant in May last year.

Here’s a tip: don’t use raw eggs.

Why won’t Australian government or industry or consumer groups make such a basic statement, and actively promote the message? Instead, consumers are told it’s their fault when they buy a sandwich made with raw egg mayo and get sick. And consumers pay for such terrible messages with tax dollars.