Warning provides food for thought
GOOD food safety can mean the difference between enjoying your long weekend and spending it chained to the loo.
Territorians planning Easter feasts are being warned to ensure their celebrations don’t turn nasty.
NT Environmental health senior policy officer Tracy Ward said bacteria thrived in temperatures between 5C and 60C, meaning any food left outside a refrigerator was a risk of making you sick.
“It’s important to transport food in insulated containers with lots of ice bricks, gel packs or frozen water bottles to keep food chilled,” she said.
“Don’t transport cold food with cooked food that is still warm. Separate the cooked food into another insulated container to keep it warm.”
Food poisoning can result in severe vomiting and diarrhoea, sometimes requiring hospitalisation.
“Avoid leaving food out for longer than necessary and discard food that has been outside temperature control for four hours or more,” Ms Ward said.
“To create more fridge space, move the drinks to an Esky.”
The warning comes soon after a study detailing a food poisoning outbreak stemming from tainted cordial was published in Communicable Diseases Intelligence.
Thirty students on a school camp to a remote part of the
“Avoid leaving food out for longer than necessary” HEALTH OFFICER TRACY WARD
Territory were struck down with salmonella.
Thirteen people sought medical attention but none were hospitalised. The most common symptoms were diarrhoea, abdominal pain, nausea and fever.
It is believed salmonella saintpaul was to blame for the outbreak, which was traced back to drinking cordial.
Salmonella bacteria was not found in water samples or wallaby poo found nearby, leading investigators to think contamination occurred during the preparation or storage of the ice or cordial, or from inadequate sanitising of the cordial cooler.
Also outlined in the medical journal was an account of a 2015 outbreak of salmonellosis in a Darwin restaurant traced back to dodgy duck prosciutto.
Fifteen people sought medical attention and seven wound up in hospital.
“Inappropriate” curing methods were to blame for the diners’ illness.
The study warned restaurants to consider purchasing pre-prepared cured meats.