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Food poisoning can be very serious indeed. In Nigeria in early May, suspected food poisoning saw 22 people hospitalised. Two girls died and their parents and sister fell ill with food poisoning in Rajasthan, India, and as many as forty people were floored by it in Assam, also in India. But it isn’t just something that happens abroad.
Cases of food poisoning are rocketing in the UK and also in the USA despite better overall health and safety. One British woman died after eating contaminated cheese and picking up listeriosis, a rare brain infection caused by the listeria bacteria. While listeria is found on many foods, the biggest risk comes from chilled ready-to-eat food.
That’s why we’ve seen a run of foods removed from supermarket shelves recently. The public was told to avoid three goats cheese products sold by Tesco, Waitrose and the Co-op, just in case they contain listeria. And Muller, which owns Cadbury, has also recalled a number of items because of the potential presence of listeria.
Because the symptoms of listeriosis are often a lot like flu, with a fever, aching muscles, chills, sickness and diarrhoea, it isn’t always easy to spot. It’s an even bigger risk when you’re more vulnerable to infection than average, pregnant, over 65 or less than a month old.
One man says he suffered food poisoning after being given ‘cold and raw scampi’ at a Wetherspoons pub, mistakenly mixed in with his order of chicken wings. And in April 25 British tourists staying at a TUI resort fell ill with food poisoning, at least one of whom was apparently hospitalised.
Even something as seemingly innocuous as leftover rice can cause havoc with nasty gastrointestinal issues. Because bacterial spores are resistant to heat, they survive after rice is cooked and reheated. Leaving cooked rice out for too long at room temperature can leave you with a bad bout of food poisoning thanks to the Bacillus cereus bacteria that quickly develops.
This is why food hygiene matters. As a consumer you need to check the food hygiene star ratings given to a restaurant cafe, hotel, gastro-pub or coffee shop beforehand. As a food producer or retailer you need to ensure your business meets all the right hygiene standards. And that’s where we come in, with highly effective, efficient and affordable food disinfection units run on UVC light.
UVC light is pure, powerful, and kills bacteria, viruses and a host more pathogens in seconds, rendering them harmless. If that sounds like a good move, we’d love to talk things through with you. Contact us today on 01379 658 721 or via the contact form here.