Inadequate Cooking and Handling Partly to Blame for Persistent Salmonella Illnesses in Canada
Over the past 16 months, the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) reports that health officials in Canada have identified hundreds of laboratory-confirmed human illnesses associated with frozen raw breaded chicken products contaminated with Salmonella, due at least in part to inadequate cooking or handling. During the same time period, there were also food recalls issued for seven different frozen raw breaded chicken products.
PHAC says that the illnesses continue to occur despite warnings and efforts to educate the public on safe food handling practices. Canadians of all ages are becoming infected with Salmonella because of “consumption of or exposure to improperly cooked frozen raw breaded chicken products.” Salmonella, in severe cases, can lead to hospitalization, or even death.