Number of contaminated supermarket chickens rising

The Food Standards Agency's latest figures show an increase in the number of supermarket chickens testing positive for campylobacter.

The Food Standards Agency's (FSA) latest set of test results on the presence of campylobacter in supermarket chickens reveal that nearly three-quarters tested positive, with 7% of the packaging used also tested positive.

Worryingly, after the latest findings were added to the cumulative total, the industry as a whole is performing slightly worse than it was when the last set of results were published in November 2014. 

Back then, 70% of chicken skin and 6% of pack samples were testing positive.

In November, 18% of skin samples contained >1,000 cfu/g, which has now risen to 19%, despite the industry having had time to react to the criticism levelled at it. So that’s still nearly two in ten chickens that are highly contaminated.

Asda is still the worst retailer by percentage of contaminated samples, with nearly four-fifths of its chickens contaminated by campylobacter, with 13% at a critical level of contamination. Overall though, no one is doing particularly well.

Scores so far

Approximately 4,000 chickens will be tested by the FSA for which the full results, including a month-by-month breakdown, will be published in May. The results after nine months of investigation are as follows.

*Others includes retailers like Lidl, Aldi, Iceland and independent convenience stores and butchers, etc.

Source: FSA. Percentages rounded to nearest whole number.

Background

The FSA has been monitoring levels of campylobacter in supermarket chickens in a bid to reduce it.

With 280,000 people a year in the UK becoming ill as the result of exposure to campylobacter, it's the biggest cause of food poisoning in the country.

More than 3,000 samples of fresh, whole, chilled chickens have been tested. The FSA says that despite the variations in prevalence from retailer to retailer, none of them are meeting targets for reducing campylobacter levels.

Among the affected samples, it is making special note of chickens that contain over 1,000 colony forming units per gram (>1,000 cfu/g) which it defines as ‘highly contaminated’.

Better results in the end?

With the full results yet to be published, it may emerge in May that things are no longer as bad as they once were.

Richard McDonald, Chair of the Acting on Campylobacter Together Board, commented that “although the impact of industry interventions has not been seen in the results from the FSA survey to date, we look forward to seeing progress in the FSA’s follow up survey.”

M&S has released its own figures following the implementation of a ‘Five Point Plan’, saying that its interventions are working as now 84% of its chickens, picked from stores at random and tested by an independent laboratory, are not testing positive for campylobacter at all.

Steve Wearne, FSA Director of Policy, called that development “really exciting", adding that “if one retailer can achieve this campylobacter reduction through systematic interventions then others can, and should.”

How to avoid campylobacter

Food poisoning can be avoiding by making sure that contaminated boards and utensils are properly washed, and don’t come into contact with other ingredients. Washing your hands and not washing raw chicken also helps to prevent the spread of bacteria.

Storing your chicken correctly (covered and chilled) and cooking the meat thoroughly, ensuring the chicken is steaming hot throughout and juices run clear, is essential. This kills any lingering bacteria that might cause illness.

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