Rural fast-food addicts risk health for a burger

Health experts are warning remote communities of the dangers of transporting and consuming fast food to those in Western Australia desperate for a cheeseburger.

For some, missing out on your favourite fast food is one of the drawbacks of living in regional WA, and it has long been common practice for people visiting the city to bring back ageing beef burgers and fried chicken for friends and family.

Kimberley folklore had residents of some remote Aboriginal communities chartering planes to fly to Darwin to get their chicken fix.

At the weekend, a man advertised and sold a 21-piece bucket of KFC chicken in the Pilbara town of Port Hedland, on a local Facebook site.

Photo : The bucket of chicken posted for sale online in Port Hedland

He had driven the chicken 243 kilometres north from Karratha, wrapped in aluminium foil.

WA Health Department food scientist Mark Fallows said ferrying fast food to friends and family in the bush seemed to be a common practice.

"My understanding is that transporting food, particularly on fly-in, fly-out planes, can be quite common," he said.

"I personally wouldn't do it with the science I know around food safety," said Mark Fallows, food scientist

 Mr Fallows said there was a good chance food taken on flights and road trips could give a person food poisoning.

"There certainly are health risks involved," he said.

"The risk factors in the situation of transporting take-away food for long periods of time, first of all, there's temperature, and the second risk factor is time.

"If food is kept in the temperature danger zone for more than two hours - that's anything between five and 60 degrees Celsius - then the bacteria will grow to unsafe levels."

Mr Fallows said on-selling food was illegal unless you were a registered food business.

"In WA, if you sell food you're considered to be a food business under food law, so that means you're meant to register and be monitored by your local government enforcement agency," he said.

Mr Fallows said the safest option was to recreate fast-food favourites at home.

"I think that's the best option."

"Try and find out what those secret herbs and spices are yourself."

Source ABC News  Erin Park 21st Octiober, 2014