Contaminated chicken WARNING: Survey reveals if YOUR supermarket bird is safe to eat
GETTY Chicken contamination warning: New survey reveals levels of campylobacter in supermarket chickens
The figures from the Food Standards Agency survey show that on average, across the market, 6.5 per cent of chickens tested positive for the highest level of contamination, carrying more than 1,000 colony forming units per gram (cfu/g). But this is down from 9.3 per cent, for the same period last year. These latest results are the second set of results from the FSA’s third annual retail survey, based on tests of 1,051 whole fresh chickens sampled during January to March 2017. The latest data from the survey found the retailers which had significantly lower levels compared to the average among all retailers were Marks & Spencer, Morrisons and Waitrose at 2.5 per cent, 2.8 per cent and 2.7 per cent respectively.
GETTY Chicken contamination warning: Levels of campylobacter have decreased since the last survey
They have invested a lot of effort and money into interventions to tackle the problem and it is showing clear results.
Discounter Lidl had the highest contamination prevalence of the highest bracket, at 9.2 per cent. Almost 17 per cent of chicken skin samples in smaller retailers and butchers were contaminated with campylobacter in the highest band. Heather Hancock, Chairman of the Food Standards Agency said: “It is good to see that levels continue to go down as this indicates that the major retailer and processors are getting to grips with campylobacter. These results give us a clear picture of the positive direction in which we are heading, and help us measure the impact of interventions that are being used to reduce contamination. “While results are reassuring, we want to see more progress among the smaller businesses, to achieve real and lasting reductions.
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“In the meantime, I am delighted to see the commitment and responsibility that the industry has shown, so far, in they efforts to provide consumers with food they can trust. “They have invested a lot of effort and money into interventions to tackle the problem and it is showing clear results.” The results for the first five months of the FSA’s third retail survey (published in March this year) showed that 7 per cent of chickens tested positive for the highest level of contamination, down from 12 per cent for the same period in 2015 and 20 per cent in 2014. “This improvement in the highest levels of contamination is mirrored by the decrease in the number of human cases - an estimated 100,000 fewer cases of campylobacter in 2016. The results met the aims agreed by the FSA Board to reduce the number of people getting ill from the food poisoning. The reduction was estimated to lead to a direct saving to the economy of more than £13 million in terms of fewer days off work and NHS costs. Alex Neill, Which? Managing Director of Home Products and Services, said while it’s encouraging to see that overall levels of campylobacter in chickens are falling and that major retailers are meeting the FSA’s target, there is still work to be done.
GETTY Chicken contamination warning: Lidl had the highest contamination prevalence of the highest bracket