Sức Khỏe

3 provinces have high levels of Salmonella contamination of pork

Information was given at the press conference “Conveying food safety messages to the public through strengthening cooperation between research and the press – the case of food of animal origin” organized by the Vietnam Journalists Association. Nam, University of Public Health and International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) jointly organize.

At the seminar, the issue of transmitting and receiving information on food safety was discussed by experts.

Dr. Dang Xuan Sinh, International Livestock Research Institute, informed about food safety and microbial contamination on food of animal origin.

According to Dr. Sinh, pork makes up the majority of Vietnamese meals. However, pork has a risk of carrying some pathogens such as Salmonella, E. coli, helminths, and pork rice. In particular, Salmonella is one of the top 4 bacteria causing food poisoning/diarrhea in developed countries and globally.

thit lon tang 468
Illustration. Source: VietNamNet.

Dr. Dang Xuan Sinh cited survey results from two projects analyzing pork samples collected from Hung Yen, Nghe An and Hanoi, the results showed that the pork was contaminated with Salmonella bacteria at a high level.

Specifically, the PigRISK project in 2012-2017 (sampling from April 2014 to February 2015) showed that 36 breeding sites carried Salmonella. Survey at the market, there are 97/217 samples (accounting for 45%) infected with Salmonella.

The researchers also ran simulations in the lab to see potential Salmonella cross-contamination during household practice. Accordingly, the researchers preliminarily processed, boiled, sliced ​​… meat by sharing knives and cutting boards to assess the possibility of cross-contamination of this bacteria from raw meat to cooked meat.

The infection rate in households sharing utensils for raw and cooked meat is nearly 78%. In families that can afford to buy separate cutting boards, knives, and wear gloves, the rate of Salmonella infection from raw to cooked meat is greatly reduced.

The second project is SafePORK in 2018-2022 (collected samples from September 2018 to April 2019) with 671 samples, of which 390/671 samples were contaminated with Salmonella (accounting for 58.1%).

“Assessment of the pig production value chain shows that the level of microbial contamination (Salmonella) is high at 44-58%, most of the samples have not met (>88%) the target of bacterial contamination. total”, concludes Dr. Dang Xuan Sinh.

Dr. Dang Xuan Sinh also mentioned the risk to consumers’ health related to food poisoning from pork due to cross-contamination between raw and cooked foods (due to household processing without using separate cutting boards and knives). raw meat, cooked meat).

Experts also offer low-cost solutions that can help reduce microbial contamination on meat, including sterilization, separation of raw meat and cooked food; Use surfaces that are easy to clean.

At the seminar, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thi Duong Nga also informed that the results of the 2018-2019 survey showed that people’s knowledge regarding food safety about pork is still limited.

Specifically, 92% of people think that pork is unsafe can be detected through visual observation. But this is not correct, one factor in food safety contamination is chemical contamination caused by antibiotic residues, when treating pigs with antibiotics to increase resistance or using growth promoters, lean substance. In addition, food can be contaminated with bacteria such as Salmonella, E. coli.

According to experience, we often choose white fatty cuts of meat, discarding bright, vibrant red meat due to suspected chemicals. But the contamination on the operating floor, antibiotic residues, contaminated meat … we cannot observe with the naked eye.”

41% of people surveyed think that if pork is cooked well, it will be safe. But this is also incorrect because when the bacteria die, they can still release toxins that are harmful to health.

Regarding practices related to food safety for pork, 10% of people surveyed admitted to using 1 cutting board for all types of food, including raw and cooked. It is also dangerous as bacteria from raw meat can cross-contaminate cooked meat.

Regarding food safety for pork, 37% of respondents said that the responsibility for ensuring food safety rests with the Government. 28% of people think that food-borne illnesses are usually not serious.

Inadequate understanding and concern about food safety will cause health problems. In addition, patients have to quit their jobs, spend money to go to the doctor, etc., causing economic harm. It even causes mass poisoning, affecting human life.

According to experts, the current trend, consumers will gradually pay more attention to food hygiene. Specifically, people looking to clean food stores, supermarkets … are gradually increasing. Consumer habits have gradually paid more attention to food safety. Therefore, the public now has a high demand for information on food safety, how to choose safe food.

At the seminar, experts also said that it is necessary to have a solution to connect researchers and media agencies, in order to support and promote food safety risk communication more effectively. meet the information needs of the public.

Ngoc Trang

You are reading the article 3 provinces have high levels of Salmonella contamination of pork
at Blogtuan.info – Source: vietnamnet.vn – Read the original article here

Back to top button