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March 2020 In 2009 a review by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) estimated that around one million cases of foodborne illness occur every year in the UK. Their latest review has been published and they now estimate the figure to be more than double - 2.4 million cases a year.
Infectious intestinal disease (IID), defined as a disease which produces gastrointestinal symptoms due to infectious agents, is often characterised by the onset of diarrhoea and/or vomiting, and can be accompanied by additional symptoms including fever and abdominal pain. Disease is generally mild and of short duration, and is caused by a wide range of pathogens or their associated toxins. Infection can result from the ingestion of contaminated foods.
Around 60% (or 11 million) of the 18 million cases of IID in the UK every year are never attributed to a specific cause. Applying the foodborne proportion of cases of IID from known sources (1 million) to those with no cause enables the number of foodborne cases from unattributed sources to be estimated at approximately 1.4 million per annum. This takes the annual overall foodborne disease figure to around 2.4 million.
Many readers will have suffered from, or know someone who has suffered from, one of the diseases - Norovirus. In 2014 a £2.5 million five-year study funded by the FSA was launched in an effort to improve the understanding of the contribution food makes to the transmission of norovirus, as opposed to person-to-person, and how that might impact on overall rates of illness related to food.
A team of researchers from across the UK conducted for the first time a series of retail surveys in oysters, lettuce and raspberries (selected based on existing evidence which identified them as the most significant risk), as well as samples from catering and takeaway preparation areas. These tests were combined with existing data on outbreaks to feed a new predictive model for the prevalence of foodborne norovirus.
The results of the research
Foodborne transmission of norovirus was estimated to account for nearly 5 times the previous estimate of 2.5%. The revised estimate is around 380,000 (just over 12%) of all 3 million annual UK norovirus cases.
Five pathways or sources were identified as posing the most significant risk for norovirus foodborne transmission
eating out was responsible for 37% of foodborne norovirus cases,
takeaways 26%,
lettuce at retail 30%
raspberries at retail 4%,
Oysters at retail 3%.
No need to panic!
These percentages can be quite alarming but it should be remembered that these refer to foodborne cases. Although the 63% attributable to eating out and takeaways probably comes as no surprise, as a proportion of all Norovirus cases (3 million) it is under 8%.
On the other hand the 30% related to open leaf lettuce will be unexpected by most readers. Even so, whilst open-headed lettuce was found to account for 30% of foodborne cases, when considered against the huge volume consumed, the risk remains low, equivalent to an average of getting ill once every 15,000 meals containing open-headed lettuce are eaten. Meanwhile, raspberries equates to a norovirus infection once per 12,500 portions. In contrast, oysters were found to account for 3% of the total but pose the highest risk per serving – estimates suggest an average of getting ill once in every 160 portions. Consumers of takeaways/catered food would on average get ill from one in 2,000 meals.
How can I reduce the risk?
Wash all fruit and vegetables before eating them. It appears that raspberries are sometimes not washed before eating because of their fragile nature compared to other soft fruits. The FSA says there is no need for consumers to re-wash ready-to-eat bagged salads unless it says so on the packet, but no doubt those preparing meals will make their own decision..
To help prevent passing norovirus on, follow good hygiene practices such as washing hands with soap and water after using the toilet and before preparing or eating food.
prevent cross-contamination when preparing and storing food by handling food carefully, washing chopping boards and utensils and cleaning surfaces properly.
be aware of the risks of eating raw oysters. The FSA advises that vulnerable groups, such as elderly people, pregnant women, very young children and people who have a weakened immune system should avoid eating oysters and other raw or lightly cooked shellfish to reduce their risk of getting food poisoning.
check the food hygiene rating when choosing a takeaway or place to eat outside your home. In catering environments and takeaways, the main source of norovirus is considered to be cross-contamination linked to poor hygiene. This highlights the importance of good personal and food hygiene.
Grow your own fruit and vegetables,
Further information
Just go to the Groby Spotlight links page. Here you'll be able to
go to the full report
get advice on how to wash, safely store and handle fresh fruit and vegetables to prevent food poisoning
find out more about the importance of good food hygiene and practices
check the food hygiene rating of restaurants and takeaways by local authority area. March 2020