You eat out and next day you’re feeling wretched, unable to stray too far from the bathroom and the basin… Food poisoning can be a sore dose, one all of us would prefer to avoid but are we right in thinking that it’s always food we’ve eaten when we were out that causes the problem?

Lisa O’Connor, chief specialist (biological safety) with the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) has this advice: “Often people blame the last meal they ate and, particularly the last meal they ate out,” she says, “but 50% of outbreaks reported by the European Food Safety Authority happen in the household and 50% at catering or restaurant level.”

It’s understandable that people blame the last thing they ate, she adds.

“Because they have such an awful re-acquaintance with it, they often assume that this was what caused them to be ill. But harmful bacteria or viruses have a time range that’s called an incubation period. That’s the time between consuming the harmful bacteria or virus and the time symptoms develop. Salmonella is the one most people are familiar with. With that, between being exposed and getting sick is 12 to 36 hours, but could be as little as six or as long as 72 hours.”

She mentions the frozen berries food poisoning incident a few years ago.“That was the hepatitis A virus,” she says. “The incubation period is much longer for that – between 29 and 50 days – so it took a long time for people to get sick. In other cases, the bacteria can make you very sick very quickly.”

WHAT THOSE COOKING MUST ENSURE

In relation to food outlets, like restaurants and delis, they have four “Cs” to comply with when selling food, she states. They must:

  • 1. Keep a clean premises.
  • 2. Cook food properly.
  • 3. Keep food chilled if it is supposed to be kept chilled.
  • 4. Prevent cross contamination (no uncooked food or utensils/surfaces used in preparation of it should come in contact with cooked food).
  • “These procedures ensure that food is safe to be sold to the public.” She points out that there are very few reports of outbreaks of food poisoning in Ireland. “The reality is we don’t hear about too many. If a single person is sick and they haven’t been dining out or eating the same food at home as someone else, it may be hard to find out what caused the food poisoning. It’s obviously easier to investigate if several people are ill and have all eaten the same thing.”

    Lisa advises anyone who believes they are experiencing food poisoning to contact either their local HSE environmental health officer (EHO) or the Food Safety Authority of Ireland.

    “The HSE EHOs are the on-the-ground inspectors for catering establishments. We always advise involving the EHO or the FSAI, so that we can liaise with the business faster and control the problem. The FSAI has an advice line – 1890 33 55 77 – that you can ring. We can pass the detail on to the EHO. If there is a problem with a restaurant, the more people complain the faster the EHO can visit the premises and investigate.”

    RELUCTANT TO COMPLAIN

    She believes that many people don’t report incidences of food poisoning.

    “The problem is that when you’re that sick you don’t feel inclined to pick up the phone. Traditionally, Irish people don’t have a habit of giving truthful feedback, but I think we’re getting better at that. Obviously if a person is very ill with food poisoning they should contact their GP if they are concerned and report it.”

    SOME MORE SUSCEPTIBLE

    Some groups of people are more susceptible than others to food poisoning, she states. “Young children, those with compromised immune systems (on chemotherapy, for example) and elderly people [are at increased risk] so it may be advisable to avoid some high-risk foods in these cases.”

    Oysters are a case in point. “Oysters can’t be guaranteed safe,” she says. “Most people eat them raw, but even cooking oysters doesn’t destroy toxins if they are present, so people who eat oysters are taking a risk.”

    There isn’t an intervention in the kitchen that the chef can do to make sure the live oyster is safe, she adds. “The intervention happens earlier in the food chain, but there is a monitoring system in place both by the industry and by the regulators.”

    The FSAI would like to point out other risk foods. “As well as oysters, cheeses made from raw or unpasteurised milk can be risk foods. The cheese-making process does help to reduce bacteria, but it doesn’t necessarily eliminate them,” she says.

    The gourmet burger can present problems too.

    “There is a big increase in the number of venues that serve these burgers now. They are quite thick, so they have to be very well cooked. Many people don’t realise this.

    “That’s because many don’t realise the difference between a steak and a burger. You can eat steak rare, but you can’t eat a rare or medium-rare cooked burger.

    “This is because, if you ask for a rare steak, contamination with harmful bacteria, if there is any, would be on the surface, so when the chef sears the surface and seals the meat anything on the surface should be killed by that process.

    “An under-cooked burger – (pink in the middle) runs a high risk of still having pathogens, however. This is because the intact muscle of the steak is no longer there. Instead, everything is chopped up and mixed together, and any contamination on the surface is now throughout the meat. That’s why we always recommend that burgers be well done,” she explains.

    Barbecuing food demands that whoever is cooking also follows the four Cs mentioned above. “At a barbecue, the chef can easily get distracted because they are often entertaining at the same time. It boils back down to the four Cs, whether you’re in a cooking establishment or at home.”

    COLOUR OF MEAT IN PACKAGES

    She points out that the way some beef is stored means that meat can look as if it is more cooked than it actually is. “A lot of minced beef is vacuum packed now, and this can have an effect on the chemistry of the food. Colour isn’t necessarily a reliable indicator when it comes to minced beef, although it is a good indicator when it comes to chicken.

    “The vacuum packing can cause minced beef to already look brown, so it can look as if it’s cooked more than it is. Also, sometimes – depending on what has been added to the mince – it can still look pink, even though it is well done so colour isn’t a reliable indicator when it comes to beef burgers.”

    RING THE RESTAURANT

    But as well as reporting a bout of food poisoning to the FSAI or the HSE environmental officer, should one ring the restaurant?

    “It’s probably a good idea, as they can take the fastest action. If they get an inkling that something went wrong they can look at their procedures straightaway, before an EHO ever gets there. The advantage is if they found the problem quickly it would prevent people from getting sick.”

    STATISTICS

    The Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) is the State body that collects all the information related to food-borne illnesses and infectious intestinal disease. The majority of the reported infectious intestinal disease was norovirus (winter vomiting bug). This is mostly passed from person to person, but there could be some food involvement. “The level of evidence for food being the vehicle for people being exposed to harmful bacteria tends to be quite low, to be frank,” she says.

    REPORTED CASES IN 2015

  • • Salmonella: 269
  • • Campylobacter: 2,451
  • • E coli: 730
  • HOW TO PREVENT SPREADING BACTERIA

  • • Wash your hands frequently with soap and warm water particularly after going to the toilet; handling raw food and before preparing food.
  • • Never handle food if you have stomach upset.
  • • Never wash raw meat, as this could splash harmful bacteria around the kitchen. CL
  • Find out more

    Leaflets related to high-risk foods, how to make a complaint, and how to cook burgers properly are available from the FSAI. See www.fsai.ie (click on ‘resources/publications). If you need to report a case, call the FSAI advice line on 1890 33 55 77.