Salmonella

[Laura]

My daughter took a safe serve course, and knows enough to be dangerous about food borne illnesses.
She asked me a question the other day I can't answer. Can you help?

We are thinking of getting chickens.....and she asked, what is the difference between eggs from the store, and eggs straight from the chicken? What happens to the eggs from the time they are laid until they hit the store shelves? Do they do anything special to make sure the eggs don't have salmonella?

Honestly, I felt like an idiot because for 40 years, I just cracked the egg and ate it....never considering where it came from. That was a frightening awakening.

If anyone can enlighten me so that I can put her mind at ease we are not going to poison the family by keeping chickens and eating fresh eggs!!

[Anon001]

Laura,

I'm going off of memory here, but I believe that the hens used for mass production are vaccinated against salmonella, but I can't be certain.

Also, ask your daughter how many cases she can find of people getting sick from store bought eggs versus farm fresh eggs.

Eggs purchased in the store can be old eggs, not fresh like farm fresh.

Ask youir daughter what makes her think you would have salmonella. Also, if the egg is fully cooked, there should be nothing to worry about.

One thing to keep in mind is to not wash fresh eggs until you are ready to use them. If there's any crud on the egg, just knock it of. I usually use one of those green scratch pads and lightly run it around the egg to knock stuff off.

By the way.... I've never personally known anyone to get sick from a fresh egg.

Also, salmonella is all around you, but with a strong immune system it most likely is no problem. That is why very young children, older people, and people with immune deficiencies are at a higher risk.

Paul

P.S. Ask your daughter just what all she eats raw. She can get salmonella from any raw fruit or vegetable.

[Anon001]

Laura,

I saw this news article this morning....

Salmonella Related Recalls Grow

Updated: Thursday, 11 Mar 2010, 9:00 AM EST
Published : Thursday, 11 Mar 2010, 8:50 AM EST


BY LUKE FUNK


MYFOXNY.COM - The number of products being recalled because of Salmonella fears continues to grow. More than 100 products have been recalled so far.


The Food and Drug Administration announced more than a half-dozen recalls just on Wednesday and admits that the recall could continue to grow over the next several weeks.


A so-called "flavor enhancer" supplied by Las Vegas company Basic Food Flavors that is used in thousands of products is being blamed. Tests show it may be contaminated with salmonella.


The product in question is hydrolyzed vegetable protein (HVP). The additive is mixed into foods to give them a meaty flavor. The food industry uses it in soups, cheese, sauces, hot dogs, frozen dinners, snack foods, dips and dressings. The FDA says that the company continued to manufacture and ship HVP even after its own testing found Salmonella in the product.


Salmonella is an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people and others with weakened immune systems, according to the government.
Healthy persons infected with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. In rare circumstances, infection with Salmonella can result in the organism getting into the bloodstream and producing more severe illnesses.


Some of the recalled food products include some Herrs potato chips, Pringles potato chips, and Quaker snack mix.


This article is found at MyFox NY (http://www.myfoxny.com/dpp/news/national/salmonella-related-recalls-grow-20100311-lgf)


I would say that farm fresh eggs would be the least of my worries. lol


Paul

[Grizzy]

Here's an article on Salmonella and Eggs..

http://www.brighthub.com/health/diet-nutrition/articles/38949.aspx

~Grizzy~

[Anon001]

Grizzy, that's a good article. The thing I found the most interesting was the following statement:

You can cook your eggs scrambled, fried, poached and even sunny side up and will still have a very low risk of getting sick. It's raw eggs that increase your chances of getting salmonella poisoning. Since most people do not eat their eggs completely raw, this should not be an issue. Keep in mind, however, of recipes that use raw eggs and don't require any form of cooking, such as certain protein shakes, eggnog or Caesar salad dressing.

Paul

P.S. Ain't nobody gonna make me stop eating eggs with a hard cooked yolk! LOL

[Franz©]

If you tour a commercial egg processing factory you will come away never again wanting to eat an egg, and with a whole new appreciation of that construct of a hen.

Eggs arrive, go thru a hot water wash and automated scrub, are candled then sized, and conveyed to the boxing or racking operation. From there the egg eventually finds its way to cold storage where it waits to be shipped.

Broken eggs and eggs surplus to projected daily sales go to a secondary processing area where they are opened, drained, and piped to bag fillers. Those are sold in several size bags to commercial users such as bakerys.

You want to never again eat an Egg McMuffin? I'll be happy to tell you how that meal on a bun is processed.

[cinok]

If you tour a commercial egg processing factory you will come away never again wanting to eat an egg, and with a whole new appreciation of that construct of a hen.

Eggs arrive, go thru a hot water wash and automated scrub, are candled then sized, and conveyed to the boxing or racking operation. From there the egg eventually finds its way to cold storage where it waits to be shipped.

Broken eggs and eggs surplus to projected daily sales go to a secondary processing area where they are opened, drained, and piped to bag fillers. Those are sold in several size bags to commercial users such as bakerys.

You want to never again eat an Egg McMuffin? I'll be happy to tell you how that meal on a bun is processed.

And the worst part is people who have never seen a farm fresh egg in the chicken house with a little bit of crud on it think that the store eggs are safer. Like Paul said the worst thing to do is to wash an egg until you are ready to use it. Their is a protective coating in the egg that keeps bacteria from getting in. Think about it it is the "womb" of a baby chick much like the water sac surrounding a baby the egg protects it from the outside.

[momma_to_seven_chi]

Like Paul said the worst thing to do is to wash an egg until you are ready to use it. Their is a protective coating in the egg that keeps bacteria from getting in. Think about it it is the "womb" of a baby chick much like the water sac surrounding a baby the egg protects it from the outside.

You can keep unwashed fresh eggs at room temp for several weeks. You just have to wash them right before you use them.