An outbreak of food poisoning in WA
Food poisoning outbreaks have soared in Western Australia.
The latest OzFoodNet data shows the number of food poisoning incidents have more than doubled. Thousands of people have come down in the first half of 2017 with symptoms including diarrhoea, fever, abdominal pain, and vomiting.
Food poisoning outbreaks nearly quadrupled in the first quarter of 2017. In the second quarter, there was nearly double the five year average over the same period.
The outbreaks were so severe that dozens had to be hospitalised.
Food poisoning is most often caused by bacteria campylobacteriosis and salmonellosis.
The data shows there were 1600 campylobacteriosis cases in the first six months of 2017.
And there were also 1541 cases of salmonellosis.
Egg dishes are behind many of the cases of food poisoning.
The surge in cases of salmonellosis has been linked to dishes including raw egg desserts and fried or poached eggs.
The food poisoning outbreaks have occurred on cruise ships and in restaurants and cafes and mine sites.
According to the WA Department of Health, food can become contaminated when it is not prepared safely. That includes meat being undercooked or where there is a lack of hand washing or when food is touched by someone who has gastroenteritis.
WA Health Department Food Unit manager Stan Goodchild said all meat products can potentially carry microbiological organisms such as salmonella, listeria or campylobacter.
“Food poisoning can be quite serious for the patrons themselves, if they get a reasonable amount of food poisoning they can end up in hospital needing treatment,” Mr Goodchild told the Sunday Times.
“The young and the elderly are always more susceptible to this type of thing because their immune systems are not functioning as well as they should.”
He said people can take action against businesses responsible for food poisoning.
These businesses can also be hit with penalties for non-compliance with the food standards code up to $250,000 per offence.
Leon Getler 25th February 2018
