Reported incidences of food poisoning are on an upward trend, according to recent figures from the Food Safety Authority of Ireland, with a 15 per cent increase of salmonella in the first six months of this year.
Incidences of such illness are expected to rise as Ireland enters what is considered the peak food poisoning season. This is because foods at high risk are barbecue favourites - undercooked chicken and burgers.
There is a high risk of E.coli 0157 in mince and burgers that are not cooked in the middle. Salmonella is found on the surface of and in chicken. However, both can be killed once cooked thoroughly.
Coleslaw and foods left out for long on a delicatessen counter are also hazardous unless regularly replaced, instead of being topped up. "They are a recipe for disaster," said Dr Patrick Wall, chief executive of the FSAI. The FSAI's provisional figures for the first six months of this year also indicate that notifications of food poisoning from bacteria other than salmonella have increased by just 4 per cent. Public awareness is one of the key factors in the increase in reported incidences. Turnover of staff in food outlets, changing eating patterns and the ever-lengthening food-chain also play a part in increased reports.
According to Dr Wall, there is "gross under-reporting" of incidences of food poisoning and unhygienic food outlets, and the real figures could be 100 times greater. There have been 315 notifications of food poisoning from salmonella so far this year, compared to 274 for the first six months of 1999. The total figure for salmonella for 1999 was 956. There were 1,637 reported incidences of food poisoning representing bacteria other than salmonella for 1999 compared to 448 in 1997. So far this year there have been 851, an increase of 4 per cent on the figure of 828 from January to June of last year.
Included in these figures are reported incidences of E.coli 0157 of which there have only been 11 notifications so far this year, compared to 20 in the first six months of last year. There were just eight reported incidences of E.coli 0157 in 1996 and 31 in 1997. The figure peaked at 76 in 1998 and has been decreasing since, with 51 cases last year.